Unwanted Demons, Unthought of Angels
by SpontaneousCombustion
Summary: ON HIATUS. BEING REDONE. Sequel to Altered Reality. Jak and Raye finally return to Haven City, and things just seem to pick up where they left off. But is there more going on behind the scenes than anyone wants to imagine?
1. Aftermath

SC: Here is the oh-so-demanded (not really) sequel to Altered Reality! By the way, I need to pick a title, and i'm letting you guys vote. Here's the choices:

Eco in the Blood

Unwanted Demons (there's another option for this one: Unwanted Demons, Unthought of Angels)

Rejected Saviors

Disclaimer: I own Raye and Tyro. That's about it.

--

Chapter 1 

Aftermath

The door of the Naughty Ottsel opened, making the two girls inside look up. "Hey Ashelin." The blonde greeted.

"Hi Tess. What are you two doing down here?"

The other girl set a box down on the bar. From the clinking inside, the contents were probably bottles. "Still cleaning up from our little party last week. It's taken us almost five days to get this far."

"Where's Daxter?"

"Poor Dax can't hold his booze as well as he thought." She leaned against the bar. "He's over at Keira's with Jak if that's who your looking for."

The Governess shook her head. "No, I've already talked to Jak. Actually, I came to talk to you, Raye."

Raye shoved a few strands of hair out of her face. "What about?"

"I wanted you and Jak to become co-commanders of the new Krimzon Guard with Torn."

It took twenty-six seconds for Raye to start laughing. "Ashelin, you do realize who you're talking to, right?"

"That's what Jak said." The red head told her.

Tess sighed. "Can you really blame him?"

Raye picked up the box of bottles again. "Seriously. I don't think that any of them will take to kindly to being ordered around by- whoa!" Her fingers slipped from the bottom of the box. Ashelin grabbed the other side in time to stop it from hitting the floor. "Thanks." They set it down on a nearby table. "Like I was saying, I doubt any of them will take too kindly to being ordered around by someone who used to be, and still is last I checked, a convicted felon and mass murderer."

"Not anymore. I pardoned the charges on you and Jak."

Raye blinked. "Now, if I had been holding that box, we'd have a lot of broken glass to clean up. Are you serious Ashelin?"

Ashelin nodded. "It wasn't your fault. Vengeance does some really bad things to good people."

"Oh Mar…" Raye muttered, putting a hand over her eyes. She peeked at Ashelin through her fingers. "You're actually serious about this commander thing?" Ashelin nodded. Raye sighed. "One question."

"What is it?"

"When you say co-commander with Tattooed Wonder, does that mean he's my boss?"

Ashelin grinned. "He'll have some authority over you in emergency situations because he has senority, but other than that, no. You're equal."

Raye paused and stood up straight, removing her hand from her face. "What the hell. Sure, I'll do it. Hey, I'm not gonna have to get those am I?" She gestured towards Ashelin's tattoos.

She laughed. "Only if you want to. My father used these as a brand. I'm not going to do the same thing."

"Okay, good."

As Ashelin was walking out the door, Raye stopped her one more time. "Hey, what did Jak say?"

Ashelin glanced back at her over her shoulder. "No."

The door shut behind her and Raye scoffed. "Figures."

Tess walked out from behind the bar. "What does?"

"That I would do the exact opposite of him." She flashed Tess a grin. "Now get over here and help me with this box. It's your boyfriend's bar, so stop cleaning the bar and help me before I drop it." The blonde giggled and walked over to help.

XXX

"You said yes?" Jak asked. I felt like he was trying to scold me.

"Yes, I did. What's so wrong with that?" I flicked another strand of hair back out of my face. "Good Mar, I need to get this cut properly."

"Raye, stop changing the subject."

I stood up to face him. Jak was maybe, MAYBE, a half inch taller than me. "Look, what does it matter? I'll be working with Torn, no big deal."

"Yes big deal. Very big deal." He told me. "Raye, almost all of those men are old Krimzon Guards. They hate our guts."

"Well then they can just get over it." I told him. "Because I'm going to do this, Jak. I don't need your permission. You're my brother, not my father." And with that, I walked past him and out of the apartment we shared. Yeah, we had an apartment. It was pretty nice, actually. Both of us had a room to ourselves, and there was a kitchen. Better yet, I was learning how to cook! Thank god for Tess and Keira…

Ever since Jak and I had found out we were twins, he'd gone way too overprotective big brother on me. I guess his concerns are well met, considering most everyone in the city hates us, but it isn't exactly like I can't take care of myself. We both have enough power to take out a city block rushing through our veins.

Speaking of which, Ambika and Lykaios had gotten even more restless lately. Without the Metal Heads around, we didn't have anything to fight or a regularly available source of dark eco to fuel them. I don't blame them either. It's not that I didn't enjoy the peace or anything, it was…

Jak and I had been turned into weapons. Our instinct is to kill, to fight. We were just bored, like little kids with one toy to play with; it gets real old, real fast. That's why I jumped at the chance to do this. Maybe I'd get to smack some heads together or something.

_'Raye, I'm bored. Can't we go out to Dead Town or something? You know, just to make sure nothing survived?'_

I groaned. 'Ambika, we've gone out there seven times in the past eight days. All the Metal Heads are dead.'

_'What about the Nest? Maybe some of the stronger ones survived.'_

'We killed anything that moved when we left.'

_'No, you and Jak shot at them from a balloon. We have no idea if they're dead or not.'_

'Just give it up, will you?' I received silence. She was probably off pouting or something.

Unfortunately, I had been so caught up in my conversation with Ambika, I hadn't noticed the looks I was getting from the people on the street. They weren't pretty. I tried my hardest to ignore them and Ambika, who had started up again about how ungrateful this hellhole of a city was. On some level, I agreed with her.

"Raye!" I looked around and saw Torn walking toward me.

I shoved an offending piece of hair, probably the same one as the last forty times, out of my face. "Hey Torn. What is it?"

"I just heard from Ashelin that you're going to be my co-commander."

"You aren't gonna pull out a male ego induced temper tantrum on me, are you?" I asked seriously. Well, mostly seriously.

"Haha, no. Just wanted to say that if you need any help, I'll be there for you."

I raised an eyebrow. "Oookay… who are you, and what did you do with the real Torn?"

He glared at me. "Raye, I'm serious."

"Never mind, it's you. Just an uncontrolled burst of emotion getting loose. You should really keep that under control, Torn. You might lose your 'tough ass, I need no emotions' image." I started walking again.

He rolled his eyes and caught up with me. "Raye, listen. I didn't think it would be a good idea for Ashe to ask you and Jak to take this job on."

"Because we have no experience?"

"No, because you two are possibly the most prejudiced against people in Haven City. No one's going to follow you without a fight."

I looked over at him. Well, up at him, actually. "Funny, that's what I told her."

Torn smirked. "Well, you'd be right. But she has faith in you two. Probably because instead of trying destroy the entire city like you very well could have, you saved it."

I put a hand over my chest. "Be still my beating heart. Torn, do you realize that you've showed more emotion toward me in the past ten minutes than you have in almost a year?"

He shrugged. "I'm going to have to work with you, might as well get used to you."

"So, no more 'princess' cracks, right?"

"I make no promises."

I sighed. "That's close enough."

XXX

Dax jumped off my shoulder. "She's a woman, Jak. No one knows how women think. Well, except me, but I'm just like that."

I rolled my eyes. That was just like Dax: try to cheer me up and then praise himself, all in the same breath. "I know, but I really think she just does this to annoy me."

The door behind me opened and shut. "Love you too. And no, I didn't accept the job just to annoy you. I did it because I need something to do. I'm getting restless, and that isn't a good thing." I turned around to see Raye, a box of pizza in hand. "And I got pizza. You can thank me for that later."

I smirked. "I'll thank you for not forcing us to endure your cooking tonight."

"I'm still learning! And just for that, you don't get any pizza!" I heard her run down the hall to her room and shut the door.

"Raye!"

XXX

After threatening to break her door in, twice, all three of us sat on the couch, enjoying the pizza. Well, except Dax, who had to have his slice cut up for him so he could eat it. At the moment, I was busy trying to start a conversation. Not a good idea. "Did you finally get your hair cut the way you wanted?" I asked, noticing that she hadn't had to push any hair out of her face since she'd been home.

She grinned. "Yeah. I got another couple inches taken off too." I looked at the bottom of her hair. It did look a little shorter then when she had hacked it off. "Hey, I'm gonna be busy most of tomorrow, so I hope you didn't have anything that involved me being there planned." Raye told me, taking a bite of her pizza.

"What are you going to be doing?"

She set down her plate. "I'm going to some hearing of the Grand Council. Ashelin can't appoint me Commander without going through them first."

Daxter scoffed. "You're screwed." She glared at him. "What? Just stating the facts."  
"He's got a point, Raye. We're at the bottom of the popularity list here." I told her.

"Well, I've still got a chance. A good few of the council members are old Underground members. Less than half, but with Torn and Ashelin there…" She trailed off. "I'm going to bed, okay? I'll talk to you in the morning." Raye headed back to her room.

I looked down the hall after her and sighed. 'She's screwed…'

_'My, aren't you the supportive big brother.'_ Lykaios muttered. He hadn't been in the greatest of moods lately.

'Just stating the facts. It's not like I'm going to rub it in her face and say 'I told you so' when she gets home angry tomorrow.'

_'You don't know that she won't get it.'_

'Do I need to go walk around outside to remind you that the people here don't like us much?'

_'You know, you seem to be emphasizing that point a lot today.'_

I didn't say anything.

--

SC: Haha, I know I told you guys a week, but I stayed up 'til two in the morning writing this, so there. Really need some reviews on this… I'd like to know if I've lost my touch or not.

Ja ne

SpontaneousCombustion


	2. In which the pompous jerk enters

SC: Wow, that was a pretty good response considering how little reviews I'd been getting for AR lately. Well, here's chapter 2.

Since barely anyone voted in the title thingy, I just took what had the most votes, so the story is now titled Deserted Saviors, and it shall stay that until I think up a better title.

Puck: And the puns continue…

SC: Well, if you're going to be like that… okay, it is sort of a pun. Take the 'ed' off of deserted, and you get desert. I was looking up synonyms for rejected and found that. I know, it's silly, but someone might find it funny.

Disclaimer: There was one last chapter.

--

Chapter 2 

Veger

"Nervous?" Torn asked.

Raye chuckled. "That obvious?"

"You're shaking like a leaf." She immediately ordered her muscles to be still. "Relax, you'll be fine. It's not like we're trying you for murder or anything." She gave him a dry stare. "Okay, bad joke."

"I'll say." Ashelin walked up behind him. "Raye, you ready?"

"Does it matter?" She asked pointedly.

"Not really, because the council's ready now." She walked off, motioning for them to follow.

Ashelin led Raye to a set of doors. "Just walk through here. Don't worry, you'll be fine." She told her.

Torn clapped her on the shoulder. "Good luck." He muttered, walking off.

'I have a feeling I'm going to need it.' Raye thought as she and Ashelin walked through the doors, emerging in a large room. Raye's breath caught in her throat as she saw the vast number of people sitting around the room. There was at least two hundred, maybe more. She followed Ashelin over to the center of the floor.

"Sit down over there." The governess whispered, motioning to a chair behind her. Raye nodded and sat down.

XXX

The meeting had only started a few minutes ago, and things were already turning against me. One of the men, I didn't catch his name, who didn't want me as Commander had written a whole list of things that had been charged against Jak and I, and had found it necessary to read off the entire list to the High Council. There were a hundred and twelve.

I nearly exploded a few times; helping the Metal Heads to get into the city, killing Praxis, having a hand in killing ex-Commander, it felt really good to hear that 'ex' in front of 'Commander', Errol, and a few other loads of bull that Jak and I didn't do. We had wanted to murder Errol and Praxis, but we didn't.

Ashelin immediately took over once he finished. "May I remind the Council that neither Raye or Jak killed the late Commander Errol or my father, and helped to save the city from the Metal Heads that, according to those accusations, they let in?"

The man turned a lovely shade of pink, and I could almost hear the Underground members snickering. "But that does not dismiss the charges of murder, Governess."

My grip on the chair's armrests tightened. Ashelin had to have thought up something to counter that, right? "Those charges were dismissed," She responded coolly, "By majority vote from this Council. Now, if you wouldn't mind sitting down, Veger, I'll try to finish this up as quickly as possible.

"Now, please choose your votes and set them on the front table." She ordered with a tone that made her sound like she was talking to five-year-olds.

After all the votes had been placed, Ashelin was smart enough to give everyone a break until they finished tallying the votes.

I was waiting impatiently in a corner of the hall, tapping my foot, fidgeting, doing anything to keep myself busy. "Wow, you looked pretty nervous up there, Raye. I can't believe this is the same girl who I flew out to the Metal Head Nest a few weeks back."

"Tyro?" I looked up to see a tall elf, around Torn's height standing in front of me. He had chocolate brown eyes, and dark hair pulled back into a short ponytail that matched. KG tattoos covered his face in a hypnotizing pattern. "You're part of the Council?"

He grinned. "Yep, and, if all goes well, you're going to be my boss."

"You're joining the new Guard?"

He nodded. "Torn somehow convinced me."

"Torn? As in 'I obviously gargle nails' Torn?" I asked, an eyebrow cocked.

Tyro laughed. "Haven't heard that one in a while. But yeah, we've been friends since the academy."

"And now I'm going to interrupt before he starts to spill all of our embarrassing stories." Torn said, walking up.

"Ooh, tell me, tell me." I laughed. "If it embarrasses Torn, it must be bad."

Torn rolled his eyes and changed the subject. "So, were you nervous?"

"No, perfectly calm." I told him sarcastically. "Yes I was nervous! I still am." I looked across the room to see the man who had read off a list of my crimes, Veger, glaring at me. I glared right back.

Both men followed my gaze across the room. "Oh, Veger. Yeah, just ignore him." Tyro told me. "He's way to caught up in the Precursor religion."

Torn shook his head. "Wants everything to run exactly by the book. Good luck with that in this town."

Ashelin and a few others walked out of the room. "Everyone please take your seats for the final vote announcement."

As I sat back down, my stomach churned violently. I wasn't sick, my nerves had just decided to come back online and I was horribly nervous. Ashelin walked up to the stand again. The room grew quiet. "The final tally was one hundred and fifty-six to one-hundred and twenty-three in favor of Raye becoming our newest Commander of the Guard forces." A cheer went up from a few of the rowdier Underground members, and I couldn't help grinning a little.

I couldn't wait to go rub it in Jak's face when I got home.

XXX

Raye didn't get home until about seven that night. "So?" I asked.

She grinned. "You, bro, are looking at the new co-Commander of the New Krimzon Guard forces."

Daxter grinned and launched himself at her. "Time to CELEBRATE!"

She rolled her eyes. "Daxter, I'm going to bed. I never realized how tiring sitting in a chair for a long period of time could be."

"Well, what about tomorrow?"

She paused. "Um… I'm gonna be busy until about six."

That pause made me suspicious. "Doing what?"

"It's nothing illegal, so don't trouble yourself with it. Night!" She ran into her room.

I looked after her curiously. "She's hiding something, isn't she?"

"Ya' think?" Daxter asked sarcastically. "Jak, when it comes to everything but women, you're an expert. Maybe you should start, ah, _studying_ more."

I didn't like the way he said that. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, nothing." He said, changing the TV channels. "Maybe you could get Keira to help."

"DAXTER!"

--

SC: I know, this all seems like random filler junk, but there's a year separating the end of Jak II and the start of Jak 3. So deal with it, cause you've got a lot more chapters like it on the way. Though they'll probably be better than this. And longer.

Ja ne

SC


	3. Pretty face tats

SC: Okay, more filler-ness. Get used to it. Actually, this is almost a really important scene, but then it changes to filler. Oh well. Like I said, I've got an entire year to fill. That, and I don't have my Jak 3 scene players cause I'm in Michigan, so yeah.

--

Chapter 3 

Surprise

"Raye, Jak's going to kill us once he finds out."

"He won't kill anyone, Tyro. He won't even find out until tonight, and by the time I get to the Naughty Ottsel, he should be to busy ogling Keira to even notice. Or drunk."

"I say we pray for the second option."

"I say we pray that he's doing both simultaneously."

"Well, we all know that someone didn't get his coffee this morning, Torn. Come on, you babies."

"Raye, are you sure you want to do this?"

"Ashelin, please stop asking me that question. I'm starting to regain my senses and if you ask again, I may change my mind." Raye walked into the tattoo parlor behind the Governess, Tyro, and Torn.

"Rodney!"

A small elf poked his head out from the back. He too had KG tattoos. "Ashelin! To what do I owe the honor?"

Ashelin jerked her thumb back at Raye. "You've got a customer."

Rodney stepped out of the back. He was barely Raye's height, which placed him two inches shorter than Torn and Tyro. He had straggly, white blonde hair and deep gray eyes. His shirt was dark gray and had 'A clear conscience is sign of a bad memory' on it in navy blue. His pants were black jeans, and he tennis shoes on.

He looked Raye over. "What's she in for?"

Raye smiled sweetly. "Some of those pretty face tats." The smile turned into a smirk. "Please."

He raised an eyebrow, and then laughed. "So you're the new Commander that Torn was setting this appointment for. You sure-"

"Don't ask if I'm sure, I've been asked several times already."

Torn smirked. "We're beginning to question her sanity."

"Do us all a favor and go get a beer or something, Torn. You're always happier when you're drunk." Raye chided.

Rodney laughed. "Great choice, Ashe. Now Torn's gonna have two chicks ragging on him. Come on, I've got my inks in the back."

XXX

Torn looked up as Tyro walked outside. "She regretting her decision yet?"

He shook his head. "No. It's kind of creepy. Raye hasn't flinched yet, not even when Rodney did her eyelids."

"That's why you're outside?"

"No, I'm outside because the ink fumes were gettin' me high and I love your company so much I just can't stand it."

"Smart ass. You'd better hope you're under Raye's command and not mine."

Tyro laughed. "It's times like these that remind me why we joined the Krimzon Guard in the first place." Torn raised an eyebrow. "We were both younger, stupider, and smart ass little punks."

XA couple hours later cause I'm BOREDX

"All right, you're all done." Rodney said, letting Raye sit up. "Want a painkiller or something?"

Raye shook her head. "Wouldn't work. Besides, that needle just tickled me in comparison to some of the things I've been through." Rodney raised an eyebrow but decided not to ask what those things were.

"Take a look." He swiveled the chair she was sitting in so she was facing the mirror. (a/n: here comes the hard/annoying part…)

The tattoos started with a crown-like stripe that went across Raye's temples. Two more lines branched off and down over her eyelids. From those, two more branched off, one toward the middle of her face to meet the line from the other side, and one onto her ear to start the patterns there.

The stripe that branched off from the 'crown' continued down with a slight curve near the bottom of Raye's cheek, where it turned away from the center of her face and continued down, going over the bottom of her chin and onto her neck. It ended about an inch and a half down her neck, where it branched off for the last time. One line went another half-inch towards the middle of her neck where it stopped, pointing toward her collarbone. The other branch went around the back of her neck to connect with the other side. In the middle of the two center facing stripes was a small pentagon three-fourths of an inch tall and two and a half inches long, the tip facing pointing through the space in between the two stripes.

The pattern on her ears started with the line from her face that went onto her ear about a half-inch and stopped, branching off **(a/n: yes, I'm using this phrase a lot, so sue me)** two ways. One line went to the top of her ear and stopped, while the other traveled barely a centimeter before it too split into two different lines. One went down, sloping along the bottom of her ear for an inch or so before meeting it while the other went up. It continued going up for maybe a half-inch before the outer side turned towards the edge of Raye's ear, met it, and stopped. The other edge just continued to the top edge of Raye's ear and stopped. All in all, it formed a bit of a weird, distorted 'K'.

A small square sat a little ways from the tip, facing down, and another sat another few centimeters away, facing up Another part of a square, facing down, was connected to one of the 'K' stripes, just above the tiny line that had branched off the 'K' edge **(a/n: I underlined the part it's talking about, so the underlinyness wasn't just a typing error)**.

Raye blinked. "Wow. These are really good."

"That's why everyone lets Rod pick. He's got a good eye." Ashelin told her. "I still can't believe you didn't wince once. Even I winced."

She laughed. "I almost did when the needle hit the back of my neck. It felt weird!"

Ashelin smiled. "It's better that you didn't. If those had gotten screwed up, you'll have to live with it. Thanks Rodney."

"No problem, Ashe. You gotta come in to visit more often!" He called as they walked out.

"Torn and Tyro already headed over to the Ottsel." Ashelin told Raye as they walked over to Ashelin's Hellcat.

"I'm hurt, really." Came the sarcastic response as Raye climbed into the passenger seat. "You know, I never thought I'd be riding in one without handcuffs on again."

Ashelin laughed. "You'll probably have to learn to drive one of these."

"Great." Raye muttered. "Sorry if I sound pessimistic, but Zoomers are more my style."

XXX

When Ashelin and I walked into the Naughty Ottsel, I was surprised Jak wasn't there yet. Keira was, though, and so were Torn, Tyro, Samos, Onin, Pecker, and Tess. Well, obviously. She works here. I also didn't see Daxter anywhere…

"Hi Raye!" I felt something leap onto my shoulder. I sighed.

"Daxter, get off of my shoul-"

Mr. Big Mouth cut me off. "What happened to your face!" Of course, this got everyone's attention, thinking I'd gotten in a fight or something.

Keira and Tess ran over, Keira reaching me first because she was in front of the bar and not behind it. "Raye, you got the Guard tattoos!" Tess said, obviously a bit shocked.

"They look good." Keira commented.

"Well, there's one vote that I don't look like an idiot." I told her, walking over to the bar and sitting down.

Daxter jumped down and took a look at my face. "Jak's not gonna like this…"

"Jak can have a eco tantrum for all I care, can't do anything about it now." I told the Ottsel. "Now go be a good best friend and get me a beer."

Dax just stuck his tongue out at me, but Tess did get me a beer. "Dax is right, Raye." Keira said, taking a sip of her own beer. Like I said, age limit didn't matter among friends. "Jak isn't going to like those."

"I'm not going to like what?" I heard Jak ask from the doorway.

I stood up and turned around. "You're not going to like these." He stared at me for a minute. _'Raye, might I suggest running before this turns into eco demon brawl central?'_

I was seriously considering Ambika's idea when Jak said, "They look good on you." I looked at him like he was wearing a frilly pink tutu and doing the Macarena. He was smiling as he said it, and it wasn't a fake smile either. He walked over and took my seat next to Keira. I sat down on his other side.

"So you're seriously not mad at me?" I asked cautiously.

"A little. But they do look good." He said, stealing my beer.

"Hey!" He smirked at me and took a swig before handing it back.

XXX

That night, Raye snuck out to Dead Town.

I suppose she shouldn't have, considering that she was now a ranking officer, but I needed out, now.

At the moment, I was flying over the area, trying my hardest to spot _something_ that would entertain me. But I saw nothing except the Little Leaper and Speartongue Lizards that they almost constantly accompanied. Well, it was something. I landed on a ledge by one of the larger groups, but even that only consisted of seven Little Leapers and four Speartongue Lizards. Maybe this would keep me busy for a few minutes.

A 'few' minutes turned out to exactly two minutes, thirty-seven seconds, not counting when the last of the Speartongue Lizards had gotten tossed over the cliff and tried to climb back up before I sent a dark eco charged rock into its skull, making its head blow up. I growled and absorbed the dark eco from the corpses, feeling it juice me up. I'd been running on nothing but the dark eco that was actually a part of Raye's blood for the past three weeks, so to me, this little burst felt like much needed crack to a druggie.

'Great, now I've got a voice in my head who has a drug addiction.'

I laughed. _"Not drugs, Raye, eco. Much more potent, might I add."_ She just shook her head and let me be. I grinned.

Hey, the less she bothered me, the more fun I could have. _"Time to redecorate…"_

--

SC: Okay, I'm done. Next chappie will be about two weeks later, when the two Commanders meet their soldiers. There will be violence, but it will be like 'K+', not 'T'. That's where the cursing comes in. Four reviews to update!

Ja ne

SpontaneousCombustion


	4. Eco in the water

SC: Okay, onto chappie four! By the way, thanks for all the great reviews guys. It makes me feel all warm and snuggly inside. Outside, it makes me cheer and have everyone look at me like I'm crazy. Which I am, thank you very much.

Disclaimer: Don't own J&D, just Raye.

--

Chapter 4 Water into Eco 

"Raye, you don't have to do this today, you know." Torn told me as we walked to the New Krimzon Guard, or Freedom League as it was now dubbed, Headquarters.

"I know I don't have to do this today, Torn, but I have to do it sometime, and you and Ashelin have put it off for almost three weeks already." I told him. "I can handle it, all right?"

He smirked and shook his head. "I know YOU can handle it, Raye. I'm just worried about the men who CAN'T."

"Torn, do you think I'm going to lose my temper and kill them?" I asked, dead serious.

Torn looked a little startled at the question. "What?"

"Answer me: do you think that I'm going to lose my control and go eco demon on them?"

He didn't answer for a minute. That worried me. "No, Raye, I don't. Between you and Jak, I think you have more control."

"Thank you for the confidence, but you don't have to lie about it." I muttered, stepping into the elevator.

He sighed. "How'd you know?"

"That long pause. And your voice was quavering a bit as you said that." I focused my gaze on the elevator wall. "Look, I'm running on empty, okay? You don't have to worry about Ambika going nuts on some guy because he insults me." The elevator stopped and the doors slid open with a 'whoosh'.

Ashelin was waiting for us. "Everyone's here, let's go." The three of us walked down the hall, into a smaller Council room. This one could still seat several hundred people comfortably, but it lacked the rising, bleacher-like seats and desks of the 'official' meeting hall at the Palace. All of the seats as far as I could see were occupied. _'Nervous?'_

'Shut up.' I WAS nervous, actually. As far as I could tell, most all of the men in this room were ex-Krimzon Guard, and if they weren't, they were citizens who hated me. Torn and I stood behind Ashelin on either side as she took center stage. "Listen up!" The talking in the room died down. "I'm about to read squad assignments. If your ID ends in an odd number, you're squad one. If it's even, squad two. Torn is the Commander of the one. Raye is the Commander of two."

The reaction was immediate. Half the room exploded in anger. I could feel my fingers twitch. My blood was boiling to change and rip these bastards into shreds. Before I could, though, Tyro, who had been sitting near the front, leapt up on stage. "QUIET!" Everyone shut up immediately. "Out of the men assigned to squad two, who was a Krimzon Guard?" About three-fourths of the room stood up. "Now, out of all of you standing, who was assigned to the Dark Warrior program?" Over half sat down, leaving about fifty or so men standing. "Good. Now I can say this and know who I'm talking too. You men, out of everyone in this group, should show Raye the highest of respect! You helped two very sick, twisted men put two innocent children through the most intense pain of their lives. Without question. You helped to turn Jak and Raye both into weapons. And why?" The room remained silent. "Because our insane dictator told us too! No offense Ashelin." He added.

She shook her head. "None taken." She stepped up next to Tyro. "If any of you have a problem with Raye as Commander, you can leave now." About seven men got up and walked out, none of which were those who were still standing. "Is that it?" No one else moved. Ashelin smiled. "Good. Welcome to the Freedom League."

X-Big long time skip to, oh, three months later-X

"So, how goes being Commander?" Tyro asked. Raye shrugged.

"It's not so bad. They still don't trust me very well, but they listen." She replied, watching as another group of soldiers completed the gun course. Their score lit up: '12, 792.' "All right, you three are done. Next time you've gotta hit silver." They saluted her and put up the guns, walking out. "Aren't you done too?"

He grinned. "Yeah, but I'm going to stay to bug you."

"Not if I order you to get out you won't." Tyro rolled his eyes and walked out the door. Raye's talk box went flew up in front of her face.

"_Raye, I need you too come to Haven Forest immediately._" It was Samos.

I groaned. "Samos, I can't! I'm in the middle of something."

"_I've already talked to Torn and Ashelin, and they said it was fine._"

"Okay, I'll be down there in a minute. Tyro!" He stopped and turned around. "You're in charge for a little while, okay? Samos needs me for something. Tell 'em if they don't do what they're supposed to, your punishment for them will be much lighter than mine."

He saluted, though the grin on his face ruined the seriousness. "Yes ma'am!" I rolled my eyes and ran out, hopping on my pretty, blue, Freedom League Zoomer.

XXX

It took Raye ten minutes to get to the Forest. She looked at Jak warily. "Okay, why is Jak here? It can't be that bad."

Dax held onto Jak's shoulder plate as he shrugged. "Don't do that! I already feel sick…"

"Too much to drink again, Dax?" She asked mockingly. He glared at her.

Samos coughed, and all three focused our attention on him. "You'll see why I called you here once you look over there." He gestured to the stream. Jak and Raye went over.

"Oh Mar…" Jak muttered. Raye didn't say anything.

The water had dark eco in it.

"Where's it coming from?" Daxter asked, leaning over to see which way it was flowing.

Raye knelt down. "It doesn't look like it came from anywhere. It's just… sitting here." Raye said, touching the water's surface. The purple goo flew over to her fingers and her body absorbed it.

After a few minutes, the spot didn't look any smaller, and Raye was starting to look more and more like Ambika. Her mind was straining to keep her body from changing, and her body was fighting against her mind to let her change. She pulled her hand away from the water with difficulty, like moving through molasses. The eco trailed after her fingers for a moment before falling back into the water and being pulled back into the little patch.

Jak knelt down next to his sister. "You okay?"

She nodded, her eyes closed. "It didn't shrink… I absorbed so much eco… how did it not shrink?" Raye opened her eyes, which were now black, and gasped.

In Ambika's odd vision set, which made everything look like it was being viewed through heat sensors, she could see the source of the eco. She plunged her hand into the water, coming back out with a mud-covered object in her grasp. _"Jak… the eco…"_ Ambika growled, grasping the object in her hand. Jak absorbed it easily.

He shuddered from the sudden change and transformed into Lykaios, who looked back at Ambika. She was busy wiping mud off of the thing in her hand. When the mud was clean, a dark purple crystal sat in her hand.

Lykaios looked at the object curiously, reaching for it. "Ambika, don't let him have it!" Samos yelled.

Ambika flew up into a tree, taking the crystal with her. Lykaios growled and looked up at her. _"Samos, what is this thing?"_ She asked, poking the crystal with a claw. When she pulled it away, a bolt of dark eco lightning connected her finger to the crystal for a moment, then vanished. She fell back, dropping the crystal.

A blast of green eco from Samos' staff shattered the crystal into vapor. Lykaios snapped back to normal and caught Ambika, who still seemed a bit dazed. He looked at the disappearing mist oddly. _"What happened?"_

Samos frowned. "It was nothing. Come, we need to go."

Ambika flew on ahead of the Precursor lift. When it arrived, they all started toward the Warp Gate. After Raye and Jak changed back to normal, of course. "Samos, what was that thing?" Raye questioned again.

The sage shook his head. "Nothing to worry about, my dear." 'I hope.'

--

SC: Okay, not the most entertaining chapter ever, but oh well. Really, the end was just a random idea that I was having at the time and didn't need to be put in here. But I felt like it, so there. At the start of the next chapter, it will be about seven months after Kor's dead, 'cause I'm sick of writing filler chapters. R&R people!

Ja ne!

SpontaneousCombustion

PS: If anyone could send me a sight with the Jak 3 script on it, or just the lines for the opening scene, I'd be really grateful, and it would speed along the chapter posting.


	5. End of the filler crap

Own Jak and Daxter I do not. Mocking Yoda I am. Yoda I do not own either. But most cool Yoda is.

Okay, I'm officially out of ideas, so I am skipping ahead to when Jak and Raye are arrested. You don't like it, too bad.

--

Chapter 5 This Sucks 

Raye tugged at the Precursor metal cuffs binding her wrists together. It was useless; not even Ambika could break these. Not that she could reach Ambika anyway right now. Veger, damn him to hell, had the cuffs modified to block anything 'tainted' by dark eco. Every few seconds, she'd get a painful jolt just because of the eco bonded to her bloodstream.

Tyro had led the team that had been sent to apprehend her. He couldn't look at her, and wouldn't talk to her. Well, he was also driving the stupid transport. It's not like she didn't know where they were headed. They had flown over Haven's walls; out to the Wasteland.

It was her fault this was happening. If she hadn't lost control during battle, then she and Jak wouldn't be in this situation…(a/n: flashback!)

XXX

_"Medics, get in there! Get out any civilians with a chance! Tyro, take groups three and four and defend the medic team." Raye ordered. He saluted her, shouted something into his comm., and then ran after the medic team._

_Raye switched over to her Vulcan and pounded at the Death Bots advancing on her troops. Suddenly, the robots stopped, clearing a path for something else. Raye felt the ground beneath her tremble slightly. "Oh no…"_

_"It's a Blast Bot!" Someone yelled._

_The gargantuan robot lumbered into Raye's field of vision. "Find cover, any cover!" She yelled into the comm. link, smashing one of the Hopper Bots coming at her with a quick stomp. _

_"Commander, behind you!" Raye whipped around, her gun sliding out of her grasp in the process, to see a Hover Guard behind her, weapons charging._

_A well-aimed bullet to its AI run brain made it fall to the ground. Raye looked up to see Torn standing there. "Need some help?"_

_She nodded breathlessly and retrieved her fallen gun. "Thanks."_

_"No problem, but let's save that for later." He aimed over her shoulder at the giant robot heading toward them. She nodded and fired on it, the blue-eco bullets barely denting the thick armor._

_A flurry of bullets came from the covered places of Raye's troops and from Torn's, who had just arrived. The Blast Bot, tough as it may be, had no chance against that many guns. It blew up, taking a few elves and even more KG robots with it._

_After finishing up the rest that hadn't been taken out in the blast, Raye contacted Tyro and the others. "The evacuations got everyone out. No corpses, no live ones." _

_Raye sighed. "Good. Head back then."_

'Raye, who is that?'_ Raye looked up to see someone pointing something that looked suspiciously like a gun at Torn. She shoved the older elf out of the way as something stuck into her upper arm. She pulled it out and tossed it to the ground. It had been sharp, almost like a dart. _

_Raye looked back up to find the figure and catch them, but they were gone. _'Raye, I think that guy was-'_ Ambika stopped._

_'Ambika? What's wrong?' Raye asked before she felt the familiar, adrenaline-like rush of dark eco through her veins, only, this time, it _burned_ as it flew through her body. Someone yelled her name, then splotches of red and black covered her vision, and pain exploded all over her body._

XXX

Raye didn't know what happened after that, only remembered waking up in a cell in the FL Headquarters. It was because of the Palace. It had to be.

'How can they blame us when Jak was at the Palace when the missile hit!' She had asked angrily too not only Ashelin, but also Onin, Pecker, and Samos.

Ambika had been eerily quiet the past few days, but not from the lack of eco. Raye could feel the confusion radiating from her darker half because neither could remember what happened when Ambika had been freed. Torn had assured her that no one was killed, but he was… scared of her. Even after explaining everything she remembered to him and Ashelin several times, he was scared of her. Raye looked out the window at the other FL transport where Jak was being held. Veger hadn't even allowed them the small comfort of sitting together, instead separating them. Jak had Daxter and Pecker with him as well.

Never, not even in prison, had Raye felt so utterly alone.

XXX

Daxter was trying his hardest to get Jak to talk. Or move. Or do something other than glaring at the wall in front of him and breathing. He'd even tried tickling him, which Jak would usually kill him for. This time, he hadn't even gotten a grunt out of him. Now, he was just sitting on the seat next to his best friend while Pecker sat next to him.

Yeah, they were right next to each other and not fighting. It was a bloody miracle. They would've been if they'd thought it would actually succeed in making Jak do _something_.

Both eco users were thrown in their seats when the transports landed. One of the guards caught each of them. The ones accompanying Raye looked at her sadly through the visors. "Sorry Commander." One muttered, pulling her up by her arm and leading her out.

The heat hit everyone like a mallet. It was scorching hot, which was expected because the Wasteland was a desert. Veger, who was dressed in his usual heavy attire ('I hope he gets heat stroke.' Both eco users thought at once.), stepped out of the transport Jak had been in, and Ashelin stepped out of Raye's. He pulled out one of the scrolls he always seemed to carry with him and cleared his throat. "By order of the Grand Council of Haven City, for heinous acts and crimes against the people, you are hereby banished to the Wasteland," He paused here to smile sinisterly, "For life."

Ashelin, who had just gotten over crossed her arms. "This is a death sentence, Veger! There must be another way."

"Your protest was overruled!" Veger snapped. "These dark eco freaks are dangerous! Now drop the cargo!"

"This is an outrage!" Came the cry from inside the transport. Pecker had his hands… wings… whatever they are… on his hips and looked mad. "I am outraged beyond words! Although I do have something to say. Not everyone agrees with this ridiculous aaggrrkk!" Daxter jumped off the seat and landed in front of the Monkaw. Pecker peeked around the Ottsel. "Decree!"

Daxter nodded, his arms crossed. "Yeah! We want a recount!"

Veger glared at both animals before smirking. "Oh, I see you wish to join them."

Pecker backed up. "Actually, we are not that outraged. Farewell Jak, Raye! Stay out of the sun! Drink lots of water… if you can find it."

Daxter glared at him and mouthed 'traitor' before turning back to his two friends. "Jak? Raye?"

Jak shook his head. "Go back to the city Dax."

Raye nodded. "It's okay."

Ashelin walked over to them both, typing in the release code for the cuffs. Jak and Raye rubbed their sore wrists. "I'm sorry. The Council was too powerful. There was nothing I-"

"We know." Raye told her, cutting off her apology.

Ashelin gave her a friendly hug that Raye returned gratefully. "You two just stay alive, you hear me? That's an order." She stepped back from Raye and hugged Jak as well, slipping something into his hand, her fingers lingering on his for a few moments longer than needed. "Someone will find you, I promise." Both elves looked down at the object in his palm. It was a round, yellow, blinking thing.

Before Veger stepped back into the transport, he turned around to look at the two elves he was sending to their death. They glared at him. He smirked. "May the Precursors have mercy on you."

The two transports took off, sending sand flying everywhere. Jak and Raye covered their faces to prevent the dust from getting in their eyes, nose, or mouth. A series of coughs made them look up.

"Daxter! Pecker!" Jak cried, somewhat confused.

The Ottsel rolled his eyes. "Don't thank me! I'm only here because you two wouldn't last a second without me!"

Raye smiled at him. "Thanks Dax."

Daxter couldn't help smiling. "No problem. Okay, tough guy, and girl, you got us into this mess, now ya' gotta get us out!"

Pecker punched the air. "Ahh, what a team we'll make!"

Jak couldn't help grinning a little. "Let's just get moving. But which way?"

Daxter and Pecker, being Daxter and Pecker, both pointed in opposite directions and yelled, "That way!"

Pecker turned around first and glared at the Ottsel. "Oh, and I suppose you know where you're going, eh!"

"Better than you do bent, beak!"

Jak and Raye groaned. They should've known the peace wouldn't last long. "Aghh… let's just move." Jak muttered, walking straight ahead. The other three followed, the two animals still arguing their heads off.

XXX

Two days had passed since Jak and Raye had been exiled. You'd think that Daxter and Pecker would have run out of energy to argue with each other. But you'd be wrong. "This… was all YOUR stupid idea…" Pecker panted, flying a little behind the elves.

"No, it was YOURS! Only a birdbrain could've thought this one up." Daxter began to imitate Pecker. "Let's go with them, we'll help together! You mean we'll die together!"

"Daxter…" Raye warned.

He stopped for a few minutes. Then, "I can't believe the city hates us. We saved those lowlifes!"

Jak and Raye both winced at painful memories.

XXX

_Jak entered the War Room to see Samos, Raye, Torn, and Ashelin. All heads turned toward him as he entered. "How bad is it?"_

_Torn sighed. "The city's divided, Jak. Reports say that the new Krimzon Death Bots are holding a vital section of the Industrial Area!" He pointed to said area on the holographic map on the table._

_Raye nodded. "Our men are getting their asses kicked."_

_Torn continued. "The KG have a new leader. We're trying to find out who it is."_

_Samos stepped up to the table. "I'm afraid I have more bad news. A large group of surviving Metal Heads have concentrated in another section of the city." He gestured to the Farm District._

_"What!" Raye exclaimed. "But how!"_

_"We destroyed Kor!" Jak yelled._

_The sage merely shook his head. "It appears the strongest Metal Heads survived. The battle for the city has just begun."_

_"The people are blaming you and Raye, Jak." Ashelin said, finally looking up from the map._

That last sentence echoed in the elves heads as both fell to the hot ground, exhausted. "We… can't…" Raye muttered before giving into unconsciousness.

Daxter, who was practically dragging himself along the ground, looked at his friends. "Right. Good plan guys… a nap would be nice… just a teensy little rest…" He fainted between his friends.

Pecker, who was still trying to fly, fell just short of the three already unconscious bodies. "Aggh… this bird is overcooked!"

"The Palace…" Jak murmured.

_"Report!" Samos yelled into a talkbox connected to Raye, Torn, and Ashelin's comm. links._

_"It's bad!" Torn answered first. The city's become a battlefield! Mechanized Death Bots have taken the Industrial Section, and the surviving Metal Heads have expanded their hold on the West Side. We're losing ground on all fronts!"_

_Ashelin spoke next. "The Council is meeting tonight in an emergency session. Rumblings about you and Raye, Jak. They thing your friendship with Krew helped the Metal Heads get into the city."_

_"What a load of bull!" Raye growled. "Ungrateful bastards, maybe we should have let them die!"_

_Jak ignored his sister and looked at Samos. "You don't believe that do you?"_

_The sage put a hand on Jak's shoulder. "What's in the past is done. Right now, Metal Heads are assaulting the Palace. They must be looking for something, and I have no idea…"_

_Something slammed into the Palace, making it shake. Jak and Samos looked over the side to see that the supports had broken, and the Palace was now falling towards the earth below them._

_"HEELLP, WE'RE FALLING!" Daxter screamed, clinging to Jak's shoulder protector._

_A blue Hellcat flew up, Raye in the driver's seat. "Samos, Jak! Over here! Jump!" Both did so, Jak helping Samos into the passenger seat._

_Jak looked at the rubble and gasped. "What the…?"_

_"By the Precursors!" A series of tunnels that had been hidden beneath the Palace had now been revealed in all their glory._

Back in the real world, Jak, who was surprisingly still somewhat conscious, if not sunburned, saw a line of blurs enter his vision. "Looks like we've found some live ones… heh, barely." Something reached into Jak's pouch and pulled out a small, blinking object. "Here's the beacon we were picking up." The 'something' grabbed the front of Jak's shirt and heaved him up. "Who gave you this?" He got no answer, only a groan. He frowned and tossed Jak to one of the other men with him. "We'll take them with us. Let's move! I smell a storm coming!"

--

SC: Yeah, I know. Finally, I update something. I know, I know. I'm sorry. I'm having some serious family issues to deal with right now. Reviews will make me feel better and help me demolish the writer's block!

Ja ne

SC


	6. Welcome to Spargus

Disclaimer: I don't own Jak and Daxter. Yes, I am actually mad enough to do this thing.

This chapter will include a flashback of right before the trial from Raye's POV. Don't like Raye's POV? I don't give a shit. That's just to all you Raye haters out there.If you don't like my character, then go read a different story. If you flame me, I will go read your story, and flame you right back. I am not in a good mood and will not be until I am far, far away from my father. That is all you are going to get on that subject, unless you are one of the few writers who keeps constant contact with me.

Off the subject of my bing, here's chapter 6.

--

Chapter 6

City of the Forgotten

_"Remind me, why are we doing this again?" I asked Ashelin. "We all know that this damn trial is just a formality, and that we're both going to get thrown out of Haven anyway." The 'we' I was referring to was Jak and I. We were being 'escorted' to the Grand Council meeting hall, where we were going to be put on trial for our 'crimes against the city'._

_Ashelin's grimace grew darker. "It's for Veger to keep up the face that the Council is a good thing. I never should have allowed it to be brought together in the first place."_

_"Well, that would have saved us a lot of trouble now, wouldn't it?" Jak asked cynically._

_Ashelin didn't answer, because we had reached the giant doors that led to the meeting room. Faintly, I heard Ashelin whisper, "I'm sorry that it came to this," as Jak and I were led through the gargantuan doors that had just opened._

XXX

I woke from a sleep haunted by nightmares. Memories. 'What's the difference?' I thought to myself bitterly, opening my eyes and sitting up. My body and muscles were stiff, from lack of use. I sat up in the somewhat hard bed I was laying in and looked around.

'Assess the situation,' Ashelin had once said during my 'training'. 'If you find yourself in unfamiliar territory, become familiar with it before opening your mouth. Ten seconds of observation could save your life.'

I looked around the room, taking in details. It was a large room made entirely out of what looked to be sandstone. There were plants spotting the windowsills in the room, and there was a large dresser in the corner.

"Awake at last, are you?" I turned around to see that a man had walked in the room from the door behind me. He was tall, probably taller than Jak, and obviously quite a bit older. Not that he looked old, mind you. Just… weathered. His hair was styled in a series of spikes, and he had piercing dark eyes. I didn't like them. It felt more like he was looking through me than at me. His wardrobe consisted of loose clothes and armor, and the staff in his hand was topped with what seemed to be a mixture of a bludgeon and a spearhead.

"Where… am I?" I questioned. Surprisingly, my voice was stronger and less dry sounding than I had expected.

"Spargus, the city of the forgotten. I am the Damas, the King of Spargus."

I took a moment to absorb that information. "City? Nobody lives outside Haven's walls, especially not a whole city."

Damas smirked. Obviously, my comment had amused him. "It is the city of the forgotten for a reason. The inhabitants of this city are Haven's refuse, thrown out and left to die, just as you were. But now that you have been saved, your life belongs to the people of Spargus. And we will use it well, if it is actually worth anything."

I stood shakily. My legs burned from the sudden movement, but I ignored it and faced Damas. Yeah, he was definitely taller than Jak. "What about my friends?"

"They are waiting at my Palace." I shifted my vision as another person walked into the room, a woman. Her blonde hair sat on top of her head in a bun, and she had several piercings in each ear. Sharp, green eyes observed me from under slightly closed lids. She, from what I could tell, was about my height. A scar marred the left side of her face, trailing from her temple to her chin. On her right temple, there was a dark spot, but I couldn't tell what it was.

Her outfit was… well, let's just say Daxter would've enjoyed it. The shirt was tight over her chest, and split down the middle. The top and bottom were attached to two belt-looking things, and the upper one had two straps going off of it and over her shoulders, presumably to attach to the back. More cloth was attached to those, making sort of sleeves that covered her shoulders and ended at another belt-thing around halfway up her upper arm. Another one like that covered from her wrist to her elbow. Both had pieces of armor over them. Her pants were loose capris that were tucked into thigh boots.

She talked to Damas for a minute, and then he left. She shut the door behind him. "So you're finally awake."

"How long have I been unconscious?"

She laughed. It was high and sounded a bit like chimes being rung. "You don't waste any time to get the facts, do you? It's only been about two days, actually. Your friends woke up earlier this morning." She walked over to the dresser and pulled open a couple drawers. "You'll want to change clothes before going to the Palace. It may be cool in here, but outside, it goes back to desert temperature." I looked down at my raggedy, blood-and-eco-stained outfit. Dark violet and black, definitely not good desert colors. She pulled some clothes out of the dresser. "Here, try these on." She tossed the outfit to me.

"Um, thank you…"

"It's Lyla."

"Okay then. Thank you, Lyla." She shrugged and walked out, giving me some privacy. I slipped out of my other clothes and put on the new ones. I looked myself over in the mirror hanging on the back of the door.

The outfit I was wearing now consisted of a light purple tank top and light tan capris that I tucked into boots that looked a lot like the ones Tess wore. I also had a cerulean bandanna much like Jak's around my neck, and a pair of goggles underneath that. The strap was made out of the same material as Jak's was, but the lenses were tinted black and lacked the telescopic red lens that Jak's had. Basically, all they were going to be used for was protecting my eyes and looking cool.

My hair was now long enough to put in a short ponytail that could lie against my neck, (I'd never bothered getting it cut again. War kind of took away the need for me to actually care about my hair) so I found a hair tie and put it in one.

While I was doing that, I caught a glance of the purple/black mark on my right palm. Hm, now we had a problem. Well, two, actually. One: I did not plan around walking around with a dark eco mark sitting clearly on my hand, and Two: I hadn't heard from Ambika since we'd gotten exiled. Of course, I had been unconscious for almost half that time. So, as I searched for a solution for problem One, I tried to contact Ambika. 'Ambika?'

Silence.

'Ambika? Hello?'

_'…go away.'_ Her voice sounded very far away.

'What's wrong with you?' I asked, spotting a roll of bandages lying on the floor.

_'Tired. Not enough eco…'_ She murmured, her voice fading. I tried to reach her a few more times, but got no answer. I stopped trying and concentrated on wrapping the bandages around my right hand, which was more difficult than it should be.

The door opened, and Lyla walked back in. "Need some help?" I held out my hand and the now messy roll of bandages.

Lyla unwrapped all of the hard work that I had put into crappily wrapping the bandages around my palm, and I _heard_ her heart skip a beat and the sharp intake of breath when she saw the mark. "Take a picture, it'll last longer." I snapped, trying to pull my hand back. Her grip on my wrist tightened. I looked at her to see that she was about to touch the mark with two fingers from her other hand. "Don't touch it." I ordered/warned.

She didn't listen. Lyla pressed her first two fingers down on my palm, and burning pain shot up my arm. I let out a cry and tried to pull my arm away again, but she only tightened her grip further, her nail digging into my skin and drawing red-violet blood. I squirmed in her grasp. "Let me go!"

XXX

'So, it is she… that means that the boy is…' Lyla smiled to herself, seemingly deaf to Raye's cries of pain and attempts to get away. 'It is time.' She removed her fingers from Raye's palm and put her hand over the girl's eyes. "**Kfwrox**." Lyla murmured, her eyes glowing bright blue for a moment. Raye's protests ceased immediately, and her muscles relaxed. Lyla removed her hand and went back to tying the bandages.

"There. All done." She chirped. Raye blinked three or four times and shook her head.

"Huh? Oh… that was fast." Raye stood, putting a hand to her head. "Weird. Why am I so dizzy?"

Lyla shrugged. "You just aren't used to being awake yet. It's normal." Then, under her breath, she murmured, "**Xwphx jo**." Raye seemed to accept this answer. "Anyway, Damas is going to be waiting for you at his Palace. Here's a map." She pulled a folded piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to Raye. "It's pretty obvious where the Palace is. Good luck." Raye nodded and walked out the door as the blonde waved.

The cheery smile dropped off Lyla's face as the door shut. Her eyes glowed bright blue again and she vanished in an explosion of sparks.

XXX

"Ahh, I love water." Daxter said, soaking in one of the many pools that littered the room we were sitting in. "Oh yes, it's so good. Desert bad." He frowned at the last word. I nearly laughed.

The clanking of the elevator caught my attention. Daxter and I both looked up to see it come to a stop and observed its passenger. "Well, you've com back from the dead have you? And my monks were ready to pray for you." I glared at him. Not exactly a great way to introduce yourself, not that he had yet… "I am Damas, King of Spargus."

"Spargus?" I asked, somewhere between surprised and curious. "Wait, nobody lives outside Haven's walls… not a whole city."

Damas seemed to find this funny and smirked at me. "Ahh, yes… we ARE the forgotten ones. Have City's refuse, thrown out and left to die. Just as you were. But now that you have been saved, your life belongs to the people of Spargus. And we will use it well. If it's actually worth anything."

Daxter, who had been doing the backstroke in the pool, suddenly crawled out of the water. "Hey! That sounds like a bad deal!"

Damas glared at him. "You are in no position to 'deal.' Out here everything is either useful or dead weight. Prove yourselves worthy, or the desert will be your grave."

"You need to work on making a better first impression." I said coldly, staring him down. Damas chuckled slightly at this, and opened his mouth to say something, but the noise of the elevator once again caught our attention, though this time it brought up someone who I was MUCH happier to see.

"Jak!" Raye ran over, completely ignoring Damas, and threw her arms around my neck.

I hugged her back. "You had me worried, you little idiot." I told her, stepping back. She flicked my ear and stuck her tongue out at me.

We both turned back to the King as he hit the end of his staff thing on the ground. "In the unforgiving Wasteland we value strength and survival above all. We will see where you stand soon enough. Complete your training, then enter the arena. Just the bravest crawl out and are allowed to stay in Spargus. It's quite simple really."

Daxter gulped. "Um, what happens to the ones that don't crawl out?"

Damas looked down at Dax, and I could've sworn I saw a hint of a smile playing on his lips. "Then it will be as if we never found you." He told us, for I knew that he was directing that at Raye and I more than he was Dax, before walking over to the elevator.

As it began its descent, I heard Daxter mutter, "I was afraid of that."

I nudged him lightly with my boot before turning back to Raye. "You've got new clothes."

"You've got new clothes and a haircut. I think I may go into shock." Raye countered, grinning.

I ran a hand through my short hair. "Yeah, well… it doesn't look stupid, does it?"

"Incredibly." I frowned and she laughed. "Just kidding, it looks great. Keira would really li-" Raye stopped. I focused my attention on the ground. "Jak, I'm sorry, it just slipped out…"

I shook my head. "Forget it." My eyes were drawn to her hand, which was wrapped in bandages. I raised an eyebrow.

Raye rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on. What do I have on my palm that I'd rather not have exposed to the public?"

"A wart?"

"Shut up, rat." Raye growled, shoving Daxter back into the pool behind him. He climbed out, muttering something along the lines of, "Spending to much time around Captain Laryngitis…" I laughed. "Here, I got some for you too." She handed me a roll of the white cloth and helped me wrap it around my forearm.

"Okay, so do you know where this Arena is?" Raye pulled a folded up square of paper out of her pocket and opened it.

"Maps are always useful."

XXX

Jak and Raye jumped out to the center platform in front of Damas throne. Daxter leaned over on Jak's shoulder, took one look at the lava below, and tightened his grip on his friend's shoulder guard.

"Hail all citizens of Spargus!" A familiar Spanish accent called. "Welcome to the arena of death, where we get to watch other people wet themselves in fear! These halls will once again test two newcomers, each fighting to prove their worth to stay among us. Let's hear it for Jak and Raye!" Then, as an afterthought, "Oh, and the obnoxious talking animal, I guess."

"Pecker!" Jak exclaimed. "There you are. Where have you been?"

Pecker smirked at them from his perch on Damas shoulder. "Damas says I am to be his new councilor. He says my wisdom will serve him well. Oh yeah, and, um… Damas also says that, ahh, you two are likely to die in the arena today, and he hopes your deaths are very, ahh…"

Daxter glared at the Monkaw. "Will you stop that! Damas can talk for himself!"

The King leaned forward slightly in his throne. "He is right. You will most likely die today. And yes, Pecker is my new advisor." Pecker smirked haughtily down at Daxter, who glared at him in return.

"Unlike you, some people appreciate my talents. It beats working for a living. Besides, I saw a few of the fights earlier. Oooo…" The Monkaw shuddered. "Not a pretty sight."

Daxter growled, and, if Jak and Raye's eyes weren't deceiving them, the fur along the back of his shoulders rose. "Why you little…!"

"Let the games begin!" Pecker interrupted, smirking at the Ottsel again. Daxter glared at him some more as Jak and Raye stepped onto the lift that had rose on their other side. Pecker made various rude signs behind Damas head before he was in Daxter's blind spot.

"I'll kill him. I swear to god, I'm going to throttle that bloated windbag with feathers!"

Jak rolled his eyes. "Like we haven't heard that before."

"Seriously, the day that jumped-up sparrow flies face first into a wall will be the happiest day of my life."  
Raye let out a sigh. "You know Dax, I think that this time, I agree with you. Now, what's say we get this over with?" Jak grinned at her and nodded, stepping onto the platform in front of him.

Like Pecker had said, let the games begin…

--

Okay, I'm really sorry for the rant at the beginning of this, but I am in such a foul mood right now, and my stupid three-way writer's block isn't helping me any. Plus, I got an e-mail from some anonymous jerk who completely burned Raye, insulted my writing, and dissed my stories. And not just my Jak and Daxter ones. They took a swing at _every single one_. All six of them. And since I don't even know if this jackass is a fanfiction writer and don't know if I could even find him if he was, I took it out on you guys. I couldn't even reply back, 'cause the jerk blocked me before I could! And, to make matters worse, I got so f'ing mad that I permanently deleted the mail, and the address was really long and complicated. It was almost all numbers, maybe one or two letters. So, I'm really sorry for whining through the entire first author's note.

Please R good reviews always make me smile and feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Ja ne

SC


	7. Arena training

SC: Yeah, I know. It's taking me FOREVER to update. Thankfully though, even though my computer doesn't have a disk drive, I never started typing chapter seven in Michigan, so I can start typing it now.

Disclaimer: This one does not own anything from Jak and Daxter, Jak II, or Jak 3. This one only owns Raye.

--

Chapter 7

Let the Games Begin!

When the lift stopped, Jak and I were standing in front of a rickety looking wooden structure balanced in the middle of a lethal pit of lava. "Oh, this looks safe." Daxter commented sarcastically.

"Dax, shut up." Jak muttered, stepping forward. I hopped off behind him and the platform rose back up to its previous position next to Damas' throne. I looked around.

The structure that we were standing on was not a very sound one. The wooden supports were tied together badly, and the metal casing that covered it was welded together in patches. Most of it looked like scavenged junk, which was probably what it was in the first place.

"So what exactly are we supposed to do?" I asked no one in particular.

Jak turned to face me, his mouth open like he was about to say something, then stopped. As if he heard me, Pecker had flown down in front of us. "Oh, so now he's good enough to talk to us face to face." Daxter muttered viciously.

"I heard that, fur ball." Pecker snapped.

"Both of you shut up before I strangle you." Jak growled. Silence was immediate. Well, silence except for the lava bubbling below us. "Now, Pecker, tell us what the hell we're supposed to do."

Pecker landed and pointed behind us. "See that?" We turned around to see a floating ball of blue-white light the size of Daxter's head. "There are thirty-five of those all over this thing. Collect all of them."

"That's it?" I asked incredulously.

"That's it." The monkaw replied. "Of course, there is the small factor that you could fall into the scorching pools of lava below just waiting to burn your butts to a crisp if you miss so much as one of these jumps."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Daxter gulp and huddle down on Jak's shoulder pad. I'm guessing Pecker did too, because he was smirking in contentment as he flew back to his spot next to Damas.

I glared at him as he flew away, and then turned to Jak. "Oh calm down Dax. Jak and I won't let anything happen to you."

He straightened up. "Hey, who said I was worried!"

"Dax, you were just a quivering ball of orange fur." Jak laughed, walking toward the token to our left.

"Yeah… well… I was just scared for… for… ah, forget it." He plopped back down on his tail (not literally) sullenly, pouting.

Jak and I laughed as he picked up the token. Another five sat were scattered randomly behind it. We scooped those up quickly and turned around a corner.

"Mar, you've gotta be kidding me." Jak muttered. In front of us lay our next obstacle: a very thin, badly supported bridge.

"Think we can jump it?" I questioned.

"Maybe."

Daxter tweaked both our ears. "Yeah, or maybe we could miss and get our asses into ash!"

"Oh, very clever, wise guy." I muttered. Warily, I stepped out onto the bridge. It creaked and groaned, but didn't buckle underneath me or sway (much), so I figured it was relatively safe. I inched across slowly, testing every spot before I put my foot down.

Almost halfway across, I heard a small 'crack.' Then a louder one. The metal underneath my feet shook violently and fell away, landing in molten hot lava. I would have followed, had I not leapt forward at the first crack. So, when the middle of the bridge collapsed, I was safely on the other side.

Of course, this quick maneuver would have wreaked havoc on my muscles had I not used a burst of what little dark eco I had left in my body to strengthen and enhance them for those few seconds. I could feel the muscles in my legs burning slightly as Jak cleared the jump and rolled to the other side just before the bridge was completely destroyed.

"Are you okay?" He asked putting a hand on my shoulder. I nodded from my crouched position, waiting for the sensation that my legs were on fire to fade. It didn't. I cursed under my breath, though I'm sure that Jak and Daxter both still heard me, and stood.

The pain worsened, but I put it to the back of my mind. With a quick jerk of my head, I motioned toward the top of the Arena. Jak nodded. Limping slightly, I made my way over to the ladder and pulled myself up the first few rungs.

-Jak's POV-

I had gotten Raye's message clearly. 'Damas is still watching, so shut up and move.' But by the way she kept wincing every time she shifted the weight from one leg to another, she was obviously not okay.

I climbed up after Raye once she had pulled herself over the edge of the platform above us. She had already started collecting the tokens. There were only three, so it wasn't all that hard. I jumped up and grabbed the edge of the next platform. Something stung my palm as I pulled myself up and turned around to look down at Raye. "Need a hand?"

"No." She crouched down and shoved herself off the ground using her hands and feet and practically cleared the edge. I grabbed her arm and pulled her the rest of the way so she didn't fall and slam her stomach against the edge. She flashed me a 'thank you' grin, and then looked down at my hand.

I did too. A cut about two inches long sat in the middle of my palm. Apparently, the 'sting' I'd felt while pulling myself up had been the edge of the metal, which was apparently sharper than it looked, cutting me.

"Can you heal it?" She asked. I shook my head. I didn't have any eco in my body at all, so a dark eco healing was out of the question. Frankly, I was surprised that she'd had enough to power up her jump quick enough to avoid getting scorched to a crisp along with the bridge pieces she'd been standing on.

Daxter climbed down so he was standing on my forearm and using my shoulder to support him. "It's not deep, so it should be fine."

I looked down at him. "Since when have you become a doctor?"

Raye laughed, "Since I started having to take him to work with me while you were hanging out with Keira." I winced a little. Raye noticed, because her eyes traveled from my face toward the floor before she turned and walked towards the three shining tokens sitting behind us. We climbed up to the platform on our left and grabbed the four there as well. I looked around for the next spot, and saw it to our right.

"Okay, how do we reach that?" Dax asked doubtingly. I peeked over the edge and saw a platform, like the one that had brought us down here from Damas' throne, rising slowly to our level. I turned to Raye and grinned.

"No, no, no, no!" Daxter said. "I know what that look means! Have either of you even considered that if you miss that jump, we'll die?"

Raye and I paused. "Yep. Let's go." She grinned. In one swift leap, I'd cleared the air between the platform and myself, landing on it as it was still rising. The impact jarred me a little, and I stumbled a bit as Raye landed next to me. "How about we wait until the platform stops rising before we try to land on it next time, huh?"

"Can we just stay here? Please?" Daxter asked from my shoulder.

I smirked. "Sorry Dax." I backed up to the edge of the platform and took a running start before jumping off the platform, which had stopped level with the two platforms of the structure, and landing cleanly on the one in front of me, right next to one of the two tokens there.

Once again, Raye landed next to me. "If that thing had been one inch lower…" She muttered. I looked over my shoulder to see the platform descending.

"How about we try jumping when the platform isn't going down, huh?" I teased. She punched my shoulder.

"Shut up you."

Daxter groaned. "Oh no, not again."

I followed his gaze to see another platform, moving left and right instead of up and down. "Oh yes, again." Again, Raye and I leapt across the gap.

On the other side, though, Raye fell to her knees. "What is it?" I asked, concerned.

She shook her head. "I can't feel my legs from here," She pointed to a spot just above her knee, "Down."

I mentally counted how many tokens we'd collected. "We've only got twelve left, you can make it that far, right?"

Raye took a deep breath and nodded, standing shakily. "Yeah, let's go."

We grabbed the rest of the tokens without a problem. Raye nearly missed the jump onto the lift that would take us back up level with Damas (well, almost level), but Daxter, yes, DAXTER, grabbed her sleeve at the last second, and that stopped her long enough for me to grab her upper arm and pull her up next to me.

"Thanks." She muttered, turning to face the desert king.

"No problem." I replied, still holding her up. I turned toward Damas as well, and glared at him upon seeing the look of scorn directed at Raye. A quick glance to my side showed me that she was returning the scornful gaze with a glare of her own.

"The candidates have… won the challenge." Pecker squawked from the arm he was sitting on, his last few words withering under Damas' averted glare.

Daxter struck a pose on my shoulder. "That's right, we bad!" He nudged the side of my head. "You haven't forgotten what I taught you Jak." I rolled my eyes.

Damas scoffed and leaned forward in his throne. "Anyone can make a few measly jumps," Here, he looked at Raye pointedly again, "When necessary. But let's see how you two fare against the living." He tossed us both a familiar looking weapon; the Scatter Gun. I grinned as my hands moved to the familiar holds in the metal. It felt good to hold a weapon again. "Readjust the Matter-Formers! Prepare the Arena for full combat!"

"Prepare the Arena for full combat!" Pecker echoed.

Damas turned to the monkaw. "I just said that."

Pecker faltered over Damas' gaze. "I know, I was just adding the… you know, how you do the thing with the…" Glare. Pecker coughed and turned to face us. "Anyway. Prepare the warriors."

Daxter suddenly lost all his bravado. "Wait a minute, you mean we have to fight against actual people? With actual weapons? Who actually WANT to hurt us?"

I cocked the gun. "Fine. Bring 'em on."

"All right, that's it!" Dax jumped down onto the floor. "I wanna be on his shoulder!" He pointed at Damas.

Raye chuckled and walked over to the lift. "C'mon Dax, or we'll leave you behind."

He began climbing back up my pants' leg, muttering something along the lines of 'that overgrown feather duster gets all the good gigs.' I laughed and followed Raye. It had been a long time since I'd gotten to do some real fighting.

This was gonna be fun.

--

SC: FINALLY! I'VE FINISHED! And it's crappy, I know. But next, I get to do a fight scene, and you all know I'm good at those!

Puck: Right…

SC: Shut up you! If it sucks, it's your fault for not catching any good plot bunnies! R&R please!

Ja ne

SC


	8. First battle

SC: Okay… sorry for taking a while. I've been feeling a little sick lately. But, I'm okay now, so on with the fight scene! WOOHOO!

Puck: Forgive her; she just came back from her friend's house where they watched about 765 minutes worth of Invader Zim.

SC: YOU WILL RUE THE DAY THAT YOU MESSED WITH ZIM! Now, begin your ruing!

Puck: Just ignore it, she'll stop eventually. Anyway, SpontaneousCombustion doesn't own Jak and Daxter, Jak II, 3, or X. They are all Naughty Dog's property. She does, however own copies of all of the above.

--

Chapter 8

Demon's Release

Jak and I walked out to the middle of the Arena, which had been turned into a circular, metal platform sitting on top of the lava with four steel boxes about as tall as I was attached to it and four more very large, box-like things around it. Somehow, they didn't make me feel better. In fact, it made me feel worse.

"You sure you're alright Raye?" Jak asked.

I shook my head. "My legs feel like they're being dunked in slow working acid, but I don't think we've got much of a choice." I slipped down onto the metal, my boots making a small noise as the metal around the edges touched ground. As soon as both of us were about two feet away, the lift rose to Damas' platform once again.

A loud buzzer sounded, and the boxes opened, sending out four figures. They were huge, taller than Sig was, and had way more muscles. Their faces were covered by crude masks, and their weapons… well, they didn't look friendly, that's for sure. These monstrous staffs dwarfed Damas' and made it look like a walking stick. The spear ends were jagged and primitive but the sharpened edges gleamed in the light from the hundreds of torches that hung around the structure and the lava.

"Ohgodohgodohgodohgod…" I could hear Daxter whimpering on Jak's shoulder.

"No way can ANYONE be this big." Jak said in disbelief, leveling his gun with the first one advancing toward us.

"One word, Jak: Krew." I replied, firing twice at the nearest Marauder. The man's head jerked back, and blood flew out from under mask, and the smell of blood filled the air. Blood, and something else.

I froze. No way. They couldn't be… I ran over to the corpse, shooting anything that happened to move toward me and not be Jak-sized. I bent down and touched the Marauder's chest with my hand, and…

He burst under my fingers in a flash of purple sparks. The sparks flew up my arm and buried into my skin. Another two that Jak and I had shot down exploded in a shower of sparks as well. I fell to all fours, one hand clutching my stomach as the other held me up. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jak clutching his head, doubled over.

The sparks traveled up my chest and neck, burying themselves along the right half of my face from my cheek to my temple. Fire flew through my veins, and then… nothing.

For about two seconds.

I bit down on my lip HARD as the skin on my forehead tore apart, two pairs of horns shoving out of my skull painfully. My skin lightened to a light gray-white, starting from my right hand and spreading up my arm, and I had no doubt that my hair was doing the same. My nails lengthened and sharpened, and dug into my sides and the metal of the platform. My shoulder muscles burned as sinews were torn apart and reconnected to the dark violet bat wings formed there. My eyesight changed, colors shifted, and I could SEE the eco flowing in my veins. I felt myself slip back into my mind as my OTHER personality took over.

_'Just sit back and enjoy the show, Raye.'_ I heard her laugh before I lost control completely.

-3rd Person POV-

Ambika raised her head and looked at Lykaios. A grin was splitting his face, revealing his fangs. She smirked and stood up, cracking her knuckles. Both turned and looked over her shoulder to see that the Marauders, who had been standing back and watching the transformation with shock and, dare I say it, fear were now advancing toward the diminutive figures standing in front of them.

Lykaios scoffed. _"Pea brains."_

Ambika laughed. _"I think they want to play, Lykaios."_

Daxter slipped into Jak's backpack. "Ooh boy…" Both eco demons moved to take a step forward, but stopped as a VERY loud alarm sounded throughout the Arena. Daxter looked out of the pack. "What was that?"

Lykaios at the small, vent-like things on the platform that were now spitting lava. _"The platform's sinking!"_

Ambika shoved him toward the nearest crate. _"Get on top of it. I don't know if it will work, but at least it'll keep you from being scorched."_

He nodded and jumped on top of it. _"What about you?"_ She raised an eyebrow and jumped straight into the air, soaring above the rim of rock that surrounded the open top of the Arena. The Marauders, who were still holding their ears from the alarm, suddenly screamed in pain as the Arena sunk down into the lava and ate them like acid.

Then, seconds later, the floor rose back up, the lava draining away over the sides and through numerous vents in the metal. Lykaios hopped down and grinned as Ambika landed beside him. The slight click of the locks on the matter transformer doors reached their ears, and the hatches fell open, revealing more identical Marauder clones.

_"Ladies first."_ Lykaios grinned. Ambika let out a 'ha!' before running into the mass of bodies.

After twenty more eco-infused corpses (and another lava dip), the alarm sounded, alerting our two favorite demons to get off the metal. Ambika slashed open one last Marauder's throat before hopping onto the box next to Lykaios. _"This is pointless. No matter how many we get rid of, more just come out."_

_"He'll have to stop soon."_ Lykaios pointed out. _"Or he'll run out of eco."_

Ambika snarled. _"But I'm not patient enough to wait for that."_ She leaned over and whispered a plan into his ear. Lykaios grinned and nodded.

As the platform cleared of lava, both demons stayed on the box as the hatches opened once more. They held the Marauders at bay with small blasts of eco near their feet, hitting more than one and making it explode in a shower of eco, as more and more came out of the transformers. As the number of enemies reached a little over thirty, the transformers closed again. Ambika grinned. _"Hold on."_ She locked her elbows under Lykaios arms and took off, leaving the now pissed off Marauders on the ground.

Damas paused, his finger hovering over the button to make the Arena sink into the lava once more.

Seem stepped out of the entryway to the Arena, the doors sliding shut behind her.

_"Ready?"_ Ambika asked innocently. Lykaios nodded and she loosed her grip on him, letting him fall toward the floor.

"She's going to kill him!" Pecker squawked. Ambika looked over at the monkaw and glared venomously before folding her wings and falling into a steep dive after Lykaios, dark eco crackling around her right arm. She reached down and grabbed his outstretched hand, pulling herself even with him.

Time seemed to slow down as both demons slammed into the platform in unison, sending out a shockwave of eco so great that the Marauders who were hit by it (all of them) went flying into the Arena walls with such force that they left elf shaped dents in the metal.

As they righted themselves, Daxter climbed out of Jak's backpack and onto Lykaios' shoulder. "Is it safe now?"

_"Yes Daxter. You're perfectly safe."_ Ambika assured him, walking toward the lift that had lowered back down to their level. _"Lykaios, are coming or are you just going to stand there?"_

Lykaios rolled his eyes and jumped up next to her. His movements were shaky, as though he was tired. _"I just needed to catch my breath."_ He snapped.

When the lift stopped again, both stepped onto the platform in front of Damas. Ambika grinned ferally at Pecker before clutching her head in pain. _'Not now…' _She thought angrily as the last of the excess of eco coursing through her veins went back to its average level. The horns, fangs, and claws all shrunk away as her skin and hair darkened. Her wings disappeared in a puff of violet sparks, and her eyes lightened back to baby blue as Raye took back over her own body.

Raye's POV

I straightened up as soon as the muscles in my back knitted together again, which took all of two seconds. Jak had somehow managed to stay standing rigidly while he transformed back to normal, despite the fact that sweat was beading on his temples from the effort. Then, in swift, eerie unison, both of us looked over to our left.

A figure with a painted face and odd, armory looking clothes was staring at us with such venom… I shivered inwardly. It reminded me of the Haven citizens.

Damas leaned forward in his throne. "Something you're not telling us?" Both of us turned back toward him, but not before I snuck another glance over to where that person had been. They were gone, so I turned my attention back to Damas, thoroughly creeped out.

"They have been touched by dark eco, my liege." Pecker said in his best suck-up voice, bowing and everything.

Daxter jumped down onto the podium in front of us. "These two get all mean and nasty when you piss 'em off. So don't piss them off. Word to the wise." He added in a loud whisper.

Jak and I looked at each other warily. Here it comes… Damas was going to throw us back into the Wasteland.

But, much to our surprise, he grinned. "Ah… then they are dangerous. And that could be useful. Your bravery has earned you both your first Battle Amulet." We picked up the two identical circular pieces of metal sitting next to Daxter's foot. "If you are victorious in two more Arena fights, you will earn your citizenship to Spargus. Here is a gate pass to allow free passage in and out of the city." This, he gave to Jak. Somehow, I wasn't surprised. "But, beware there is no true refuge outside our walls. The desert is less kind than I. And for your victory, a gun mod is your prize." We grabbed the two Blaster mods off the stand as well.

We grinned at each other and slipped them onto our Morph Guns, switching them over to the sleeker, lighter Blaster mode.

Daxter pumped a fist into the air. "Oh yeah! Now we're talking!" He looked around next to him to see that there was nothing left. "Hey? What do I get? Nothin'... as usual!" He sat down, pouting. Jak laughed and picked him up, putting him back on his shoulder and hopping up to the platform where the one of the doors to exit was.

As soon as the doors slid shut behind us, there was a drop in the temperature. By about a degree and a half. Maybe not even a half.

"Those were some sweet moves in the arena." Both of us turned around to see a very LARGE elf standing behind us. Seriously, this guy could've been training to be the next Krew. "But a little more choke and you would have popped, eh?" He demonstrated this with a meaty fist closing around air.

"You talking to us?" Jak asked, glowering at him.

Daxter, who was apparently done pouting, jumped up. "Yeah! You talking to... them?"

His voice took on a highly sarcastic tone. "No, I'm conversing with me sweet departed mum. Of course you, ya bore head!" He snapped, putting his face up near Daxter's and making the Ottsel in question cringe. He stepped back and looked Jak and I up and down. "You two are from the Big Smoke, eh?"

I opened my mouth to give out an extremely rude remark, but Jak stopped me. "Who's asking?"

Obviously, this guy wasn't used to having his authority challenged, cause he did not look very happy with Jak and returned his glower almost twofold. "The guy who runs this place, that's who. Kleiver's the name."

"Funny, I thought Damas was in charge." I muttered.

He glared at me. "You blokes stick with me, and I'll take care of ya. In fact, I've got a job for ya right now. Ride me Leaper Lizards here" Kleiver gestured toward two very large, upright lizards like the ones I'd noticed while walking to the Palace and Arena, "And catch a few of those little buggers that've been raiding me storerooms. Snag me 6 of them puppies, and I'll let you drive one of me racing vehicles. That is, if Damas ever lets you leave the city."

At the word 'racing', Jak's eyes lit up. "I think we can handle that." I shook my head and sighed.

"Nooo! I hate riding animals... they make me chafe!" Daxter moaned. Jak and I both laughed as we mounted the animals.

"I managed to stick a couple of tracers on the little buggers last time I saw 'em." Kleiver said, handing Jak and I a pair of tracker maps that looked a lot like Vin's. "These'll let you track 'em down. Just let the Lizards do the rest." He walked off, back toward the Arena. As the doors opened briefly, the sound of cheering came through. Another fight obviously had started.

Jak looked over at me. "You sure you know how to ride one of these things?"

"If it's anything like a horse, sure. Horses are like Leaper Lizards, only on four legs, a lot higher off the ground, and not a reptile." I added at his confused look. "You sure you can ride one?"

"Yeah. It's like a Flut Flut. Except it's not a bird." He grinned at me.

"Oh, haha, very funny wise guy." I said sarcastically, kicking the Leaper a little. It let out a small squawk and started forward.

--

SC: Oh. My. Fucking. God. I am SOOOOO out of practice with writing these. They'll get better soon, I promise. I hope. Anyway, here's the new chapter for my slowly updated J&D fanfic. Read and Review please!

Ja ne

SC


	9. The Dark Satellite and Eco Crystal 1

SC: Okay, I didn't get many reviews to get me off my lazy butt, but I got one from one of my most loyal reviewers, c0me as y0u are, that did. It makes me feel really good to know that someone still actually reads these. I mean, yeah, the new chapter got 20 some hits, but that doesn't actually mean they all read it. And before I get a flame saying that not everyone's going to review, I know. I read plenty of stories and forget to review a lot of them. That, of course, I blame on my twenty freaking minute time limit online.

But enough of my ranting, on to the chapter!

Disclaimer: SpontaneousCombustion doesn't own anything in this story except for her OCs.

--

Chapter 8

Seem's Warning

Jak looked at the map on his wrist to see that another two of the blinking dots had vanished; the kangarat he'd just gotten rid of, and one of Raye's.

"There's the next one Jak!" Daxter yelled, pointing over to a nearby well. And indeed, one of the pests did sit there, trying to get a drink of the water. Jak dug his heels into the Leaper's side and turned it, charging at the rat. The stupid thing didn't know what hit it as the Leaper Lizard snapped its neck and gulped it down.

Daxter grimaced. "Eww. I've suddenly lost my appetite."

Jak smirked. "That's a first."

"Oh hardy har har, very funny Jak. Some friend you are." He muttered, crossing his arms. "Can we just find Raye?"

At that moment, Jak's wrist map started beeping. He pressed one of the buttons experimentally, and Raye's voice came through.

"_Guess what I figured out these maps can do_?" She laughed through the slight static.

"All right, smarty pants, where are you?" Jak asked teasingly.

"_Eh, hold on…_" There were a few beeps, and then a blue arrow popped up on map. "_Hah! Too easy._"

"Where'd you learn to do that?"

There was a moment of silence. "_Torn and Ashelin showed me._" There was another pause. "_And anyway, it's a pretty simple system, kind of like the GPS's back in my world. Just get down here. I've only got one more kangarat to catch._"

Jak pushed the button again, cutting off the communicator, before heading toward the arrow on the map.

Raye met him at the beginning of the beach. "Hey. Do you sense that?"

"Sense what?" Jak asked, slightly confused. A sudden surge of dark eco suddenly set off alarms in his mind.

"That." She stated, turning her lizard toward the opposite end of the beach. "It's down this way."

Jak nudged his Leaper after her. "You sure?"

"I chased that stupid rat all the way down here, and it led me everywhere BUT that way, so that's gotta be where it's at." After riding for around thirty more seconds, Jak and Raye stopped their lizards and climbed off them, an expression of shock and awe on their faces.

"No way…" Raye breathed. In front of them was a huge, satellite-like object made of what seemed to be metal made from solidified dark eco.

Daxter, of course, being Daxter, only stared at it for a moment before going back to his favorite hobby: making fun of people. And the closest people happened to be a group with painted faces, nearly shaved heads, and odd looking clothes. Unfortunately, their odd appearances just provided more and more ammo for the Ottsel to work with.

"Check out these funny dudes, huh..." Daxter chuckled. "Nice threads. I didn't know rubber was back in. What are ya working on, monk boy?"

One monk turned around, glaring at Daxter with eerie red eyes. Jak and Raye both glanced at each other. This was the person who had been staring at them in the Arena earlier.

"It is none of your concern, animal." They said in an odd, whispery, female voice.

Now, Daxter was not used to being responded to in such a manner when he insulted someone. That combined with the fact that he did NOT like being called animal made him glare at the monk. "Look, coloring book, we've had a hard week. Don't push it!"

This time, the monk did not respond, but instead focused her gaze on Jak and Raye. "The arena shows all, dark ones. Hate consumes your eyes."

Jak rolled said hate consumed eyes. "Great. Thanks for the tip."

The monk's stern gaze didn't move. "It will destroy you... just as these Precursors destroyed themselves."

Raye blinked and looked at the object again. "That… thing is a Precursor artifact?"

Daxter scoffed. "It doesn't look like any Precursor crap we've seen."

"These artifacts are an abomination." The monk stressed the word 'abomination'. "One fell on the great volcano. We sent an expedition to the mountain, but my monks never returned. Ill tidings sing in the wind. I fear the remaking of the world is at hand." She made a sign with her hands.

Daxter was barely holding back the full blunt of his amusement. "I think you've been out in the sun a little too long. Let's go guys." Jak and Raye both turned to walk off.

Behind them, the monk spoke again. "You must leave this place! Heroes think they can save the world, when they themselves are lost. You two could not possibly understand the dark forces at work here."

The twins froze for a moment, their hands inches away from the reins of their Lizards. Jak was the first to snap, turning back and striding back over to the monk so quickly she didn't have time to react. "Don't talk to us about dark powers." He growled angrily, placing his face inches from the monk's. The look of fear on her face was clear even from where Raye was standing. She looked at the machine and gasped.

"Jak… it's moving." Jak turned toward the 'abomination' and reached a hand out experimentally. A thin stream of dark violet lightning stretched from his hand to the screen.

Raye walked over, staring at the thing warily. "Jak…"

He looked over at her. "I want to know what this is. Stand back." He placed his hand on the screen, and the satellite whirred into life. Jak pulled his hand back in surprise as a metal claw pushed through the holographic screen, holding a dark purple crystal.

"You cracked it, Jak." Daxter grinned at Jak, but the grin faded as he saw the look on the elves face.

"Jak… isn't that the thing…" Raye started. He nodded.

"This is the thing that was in the forest." Jak murmured, reaching out for it.

The monk reached out to stop him. "Don't touch it! Dark eco." She whispered while staring at the crystal with the same fear-filled look she had given to Jak.

Jak grabbed the crystal anyway. Daxter smirked at the monk and clapped as he stood on Jak's shoulder. "Yeah, you're impressed now aren't ya? Come on, give him his props."

She wasn't amused. "Those are solid eco crystals. It has been passed down through time that they power the greatest of Precursor technologies." She turned back to the screen, which was flashing strange letters in an erratic pattern. "Strange... It speaks an ancient dialect. The earliest Precursor forms. Something about re-claiming this unfinished world..."

Raye looked over Jak's shoulder. "Those look kind of like the coordinates from the time map…"

The monk looked up toward the sky. "It is picking up a very powerful signal." The worry did not disappear from her face.

The machine suddenly shuddered violently. The monks who had been examining it suddenly stepped back, and the citizens walking around suddenly stopped to stare.

Daxter hunched down on Jak's shoulder. "I don't think we're gonna like what this thing is yapping to!"

The satellite shot into the air and continued to shake before it exploded, sending chunks of smoking metal down to the earth below. The monk turned to Jak and Raye, furious. "Even you cannot save us from this, heroes!"

Daxter, not to be ignored OR upstaged, jumped down to the ground. "Hey, I'm the REAL hero here. You can call me… Orange Lightning. Zazaziing!" He zipped around as fast as his little Ottsel legs would let him, which was surprisingly fast.

The monk glared at him. "You may carry the color of our creators, animal," Daxter growled at the name once again, "But we have plans to save ourselves." She turned back to Jak and Raye. "Stay out of our business. You two and Orange Lightning are not welcome here!"

Raye glared at her. "Come on Jak, let's go." She pulled on his arm and tugged him away from the explosion site before he did something that he would later regret to the monk.

That didn't, however, stop him from silently fuming about it as they walked away. He looked to his left when he felt Raye turn over his wrist to look at the eco crystal he was still clutching in his palm. He stopped and let her take it. "So… that thing in the forest was an eco crystal?" Raye muttered, tapping the purple stone lightly. Violet sparks flew from where her finger touched.

Daxter looked between the elves. "What are you two talking about?" Jak explained what had happened in Haven Forest mere weeks before the war had started.

"I can see why Samos didn't want Lykaios to have it." Daxter said. "If it can power that weird dark Precursor crap, Mar knows what it would've done to him."

Raye nodded. "Yeah. I don't think I want to see Lykaios two point oh. We've got enough trouble with Ambika." She heard a small cry of protest from the back of her mind.

Jak took it and tucked in his pack. "Trust me. We won't have to worry about that."

'I hope not.' Raye thought, following Jak through the streets. She definitely didn't like that little spark that seemed to enter his eye as he had taken the crystal back from her. 'I really hope not.'

--

SC: Dear God, it is done. Not one of my longest chapters, but… it's good, right? Two reviews. TWO stinking reviews are all I need before I'll start typing the next chapter. Just two.

Ja ne

SC


	10. Kleiver's Challenge

SC: Not much to say really… just enjoy the chapter.

Disclaimer: SpontaneousCombustion doesn't own anything in this story except for her OCs.

--

Chapter 10

Kleiver's Challenge

As Jak pocketed the crystal, Daxter spoke up. "Hey, didn't Kleiver say that we could use one of his cars?"

Jak grinned. Raye shook her head. Anything that involved driving, and Jak was there. "Yeah, let's go."

They arrived at the Garage almost fifteen minutes later. "See, this is what maps are for." Raye said as they walked through the door.

"Well, if it isn't the newbies." Kleiver chuckled.

Daxter growled. "Keep yappin', jelly boy, and we'll see who-"

Kleiver put his face up near Daxter's. "Bite ya bum, rat face, or I'll pound ya!"

Dax waved a hand in front of his face. "Urgh... Great stink of the Precursors. I got two words for ya: tooth brush!"  
Raye interrupted the oncoming fight. "Nice rides."  
Kleiver beamed proudly. "You like what you see? We use these babies to make runs into the deep desert to retrieve artifacts. Tough wheels for tough work."

"You said we could use one." Jak reminded him.  
Kleiver stroked his chin in thought. "I did, didn't I? But not one of those." He jerked a thumb over his shoulder in the direction of vehicles that were taller than any of the elves. "Those are for the big boys. You can use that one." He pointed to one that was practically hidden behind his huge bulk. Compared to the other vehicles, it looked like a child's toy.

Daxter laughed. "What a runt!"

"Seems to fit you." Kleiver said, smirking.

Raye looked it over. There was only one seat. "You two go ahead. I'll go explore a little." She gave Jak a little hug before walking back inside into the city.

--

Spargus was much smaller than Haven, and the layout was a lot easier to keep track of. With the help of the map Kleiver had oh-so-kindly provided, I figured out where everything in the city was within twenty minutes, and that was without riding a Leaper Lizard half the time.

When I got down to the area near the beach, I noticed that the bits and pieces of the Dark Satellite from the explosion were gone, probably thanks to Seem and her monks. My temper rose as I thought of what Seem had said to Jak and I. 'What does she know about "lost heroes"?' I thought, kicking the sand. The steel toe of my boot hit something that let out an almost metallic 'clink' to soft for regular ears to hear. But, thanks to my super-sensitive hearing, I did, and immediately became curious. I dug through the sand, yanking my hand back when something sharp sliced it.

I looked down at my bleeding palm to see that something had cut through the skin on my left hand, leaving a mark stretching from the base of my thumb to my ring finger, and dark red-violet blood was welling up around the wound. I cursed and shook my hand a little, and the blood dripped down my palm.

But it didn't stop. The blood _spread_, moving down my wrist in a curved pattern and began to form what seemed to be the wings from the mark on my other palm. It paled, changing from red-violet to almost cerulean, then to a white that was tinted light blue.

Then, my hand felt like it was on fire; the mark was burning me! I slapped my other hand over it, and the pain became nearly blinding for a moment before disappearing just as suddenly as it came. I pulled it back to see that the mark was gone, the only sign anything had happened was the cut that was simply refusing to heal. I concentrated, sending a rush of dark eco to the spot. My hand paled slightly, but the eco didn't even touch the spot, and bright red, yes _red_, blood continued to leak down my palm.

After a moment's consideration, I unwound the long strip of cloth covering my right hand and tied the bandages over the wound. Taking a shaky breath, I stood back up. 'Ambika?'

_'Don't ask me, Raye. I don't know what that was either.'_ She replied.

'You could at least let me finish next time.' I told her. 'It's a little unnerving to have you answering questions I haven't even asked yet.' She just chuckled.

Really, I was somewhat relieved to hear Ambika again. I'd grown so used to having someone to talk to (even if it technically was me that I was talking too), that it seemed almost alien to not hear her voice ridiculing me. "I wonder if this happened to Jak too…" I muttered to myself. Looking down at the map on my arm, it showed that Jak was heading back toward Spargus.

I turned around and started running back to the Garage. I had to tell him what had just happened.

As I neared the Garage doors, they opened, and Damas walked out, and I nearly ran smack into him (sand-covered-rock isn't exactly the easiest thing to stop on, you know). "Oh, Damas!" I yipped, surprised. "Um, is Jak back yet?"

Damas looked down at me with what I could only perceive was contempt in his eyes. Pecker, who was on his shoulder, smirked a little. I glared at him and the smirk disappeared and was what was replaced with worry, probably for his safety. "I sent him out to collect the Precursor artifacts that have been revealed by the sandstorm."

That took a moment to register. I hadn't even noticed it. Then I realized that, if I strained my ears really hard, I could hear the whistling of the winds outside the walls and the sand scraping the stone smooth. "I see." The King just walked past me, probably going back to his palace or the Arena. With a sigh, I leant up against the wall next to the crudely welded metal door. 'Well now what the hell do I do?' I wasn't brave enough to call Jak whilst he was driving, in a sandstorm no less, but this was too important to wait!

With another defeated sigh, I walked into the garage. Kleiver was nowhere in sight, so I began to examine. It was sleek, obviously built for speed, and lacked the bulky armor most of the other vehicles possessed. I looked at the steering controls, and found that they were quite similar to the cars back home.

"Hey!" I looked up to see Kleiver standing there, his hands covered up to the wrist in grease.

I stepped away from the car. "Sorry. Good looking car though."

The bulky elf raised an eyebrow. "What would a sheila from the Big Smoke know about Wastelander cars?"

"Plenty." I responded. I walked over to the car he had been working on to see a vast array of tools on the other side. "Like you might want to use a smaller wrench to get these bolts on the wheel turned."

He 'hmph'ed, irritated, and looked at the wrench. After a moment, he pulled it off and grabbed a smaller one. I smirked. "Don't get cocky, ankle-biter." I frowned a little at the insulting nickname. "Just 'cause ya know a few things about 'em don't make you an expert."

I crossed my arms. I'd taken auto-mechanics my junior year. Given, that was two years ago, but I still remembered a pretty good deal of it. Sure, maybe I couldn't do anything with, say, the turbo boosts, but…

I looked up at the sign of movement and caught the wrench had Kleiver had thrown at me. "You think you're so smart, you fix it."

I shrugged. "Okay." After a moment, I asked, "What, exactly, am I fixing?"

"Rear axle's broken." Was all he said. I grinned and slid under the car, wincing as a rock (or seven) scraped my back. I grimaced as I saw the axle. The thing was about to split in half; no way a freaking wrench could fix it.

With another smirk, I set the wrench down and put a finger on the crack. A spark of dark eco played along the tip, welding the metal together as my digit moved along it. I pulled myself off (again, cursing the rocks) when it was finished. "Done."

Kleiver opened his mouth to say something, but the doors behind me opened and I turned to see Damas walk in, Pecker still unfortunately on his shoulder. "Any problems Kleiver?"

I felt him clap a hand on my shoulder. "'Course not. Just showin' the sheila the way around the vehicles." I heard the faint sarcasm in his voice, and, by the look on his face, so did Damas.

"I see." Turning to me, he said, "Jak is on his way back here."

I attempted to keep the relief that I felt off my face, but I don't think it worked. "Great, I needed to talk to him."

Over the sound of the roaring wind that had been bombarding my ears for the past five minutes, I heard what sounded like an engine. The Garage doors opened a second later, and the "car" Jak had been driving when I saw him earlier shot through them.

I grinned when I saw him. "Are we having fun yet?"

--

SC: Horrible place to leave off, I know, but I'm trying to progress through these chapters quickly, as they are awkward to write. Why you ask? Well for one, every time I do anything that involves Damas, two worries pop into my mind:

One: Am I making him OOC? And

Two: How the fuck am I going to get this to work out?

Now, none of you know what #2 is talking about, so don't you worry your pretty little heads about it. Read and review please!

Ja ne

SC


	11. Race against the monks

SC: Grr… I hate school… so much freaking work… combined with marching band, I have no free time. Seriously, I've been going to marching contest for three weeks straight. And I had one this Saturday. NO MORE CONTESTS! WOOT!

Disclaimer: Feh, I only wish…

--

Chapter 11

Jak grinned as he climbed out of the Dune Puppy. "Loads." His eyes traveled to Damas, who was standing behind her.

"Good work. That was… close." The Desert King said awkwardly.

Pecker looked over at Damas, a smirk on his face. "Oh, are you beginning to care? Damas says... urrgh... urgg... uhhg." His last words were cut off as Damas held the monkaw's lips together.

"My concern was for the artifacts, and we will use them well." He snapped at the now silent Pecker. "That armor you found, it is very rare indeed. Pecker here," Insert a sharp jerk of the King's head toward said Monkaw, "Says it's the very armor Mar once wore in his battles for this planet, long ago. Keep it for yourself. Trust me, you'll need it." With a smirk, Damas turned and left the Garage.

Jak and Raye looked at each other, then down at the armor. He pulled off the communicator/map Kleiver had given him before slipping the armor on and tightening the straps. He then stepped back. "How do I look?"

Raye laughed. "Wow, look at Mr. Big Hero."

Jak's grin faltered. "Nuh-uh. No more world saving, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah. I know. No worries out here." Raye sighed.

Daxter, who had been oddly quiet, suddenly piped up. "Yeah, like an extended vacation."

"One that just HAPPENS to be in the desert where we're going to have to spend the rest of our lives. Joy." Raye rolled her eyes, turning and throwing her hands in the air.

Jak, being Jak and very sharp, looked at her hands carefully. "You moved the bandages."

Raye looked over her shoulder at him, her hands still in the air. "Huh?"

Jak grabbed her wrist and pulled it down to see the mark sitting in plain view. "You switched the hand you had the bandages on."

The raven-haired elf smacked her forehead. "Right! I needed to talk to you." She recounted the incident at the beach.

Daxter leaned up against Jak's head. "You sure you weren't just seeing things?"

Raye glared at him and pulled the bandages off, showing the still open cut. "Does this look like I was seeing things?"

Jak examined it. "Try healing it again."

A sigh escaped from her lips. "Fine. But I'm telling you, it won't work." Raye closed her eyes and focused on sending the painful but healing eco needed to seal the cut on her palm. The eco actually went into the veins in her palm this time, but stopped at the edges of the cut, giving it an odd, dark violet look. Raye released her hold on the eco and it dispersed back through her veins. "See?"

"And Ambika had no idea what happened?"

"None. Does Lykaios?" Jak paused for a moment before shaking his head. "It won't kill me to let it heal naturally." She wrapped her hand up again. "Let's go; I'm getting sick from the smell of gas." Jak chuckled and followed her out. Before they even left the large alley-like street that led to the Garage, they both saw Seem standing there with her Leaper Lizard.

Both stopped as the monk turned toward them and frowned. Jak grimaced but kept walking, making Raye run to catch up to him. "You two are still here?" She hissed.

Jak smirked. "Yeah, we thought we'd hang out... catch some rays..."

Seem glared at him. "This isn't a game! I am Seem. We monks are sworn to discover and protect the secrets of the Precursors."

Raye looked over at the Leaper beside her. "What's with the lizard?"

Her question was greeted with a look that clearly meant that Seem thought her question was stupid. "These Leaper mounts allow us to travel where you cannot."

Daxter walked over to it and watched the Leaper nibble on a patch of dry, desert grass. "Man those babies sure stuff their faces. We saw one gulp a load of kanga-rats not too long ago. Stupid rats, they just sat..." Daxter was cut off as the Leaper Lizard snapped him up in its mouth, but with the Ottsel's struggling, it only managed to get up to Daxter's waist in its mouth.

Raye shook her head and sighed as the reptile mount ran around, trying to get the stubborn 'meal' down its throat.

Seem watched the display with disgust. "You will never last out here. That Dark Eco crystal from the satellite..." Jak's hand immediately traveled to his pouch. "I want it before it falls into the wrong hands. I'll wager a Light Crystal against it, if you race my monks on their Leapers." She turned to her own Leaper, which had stopped next to her, Daxter's tail still hanging out of its mouth, and made a few odd hand signs. "Sien-com-tava!" The Lizard spat Daxter out. "Baroosh, baroosh..."

Daxter, who was on the ground, and covered in Leaper spit, (**a/n: Eeeeeew!) **glared up at her. "Just show us where the starting line is!" Seem nodded, not appearing to realize that he was trying to be rude, and mounted her Leaper Lizard.

"Follow me." Jak and Raye had to follow on foot; considering they didn't have any Lizards to ride. They turned the corner to see three white-painted monks sitting on their dark grey Leaper Lizards. They turned and bowed their heads when they saw Seem. "Jgl xzo Qwotpwhfwh cgxtz fiow lfp."(1) They all chanted in unison.

Seem nodded slightly. "Gdy lfp gh covv." (2)

One noticed Jak and Raye standing behind her. His eyes narrowed. "Czgx gwo xzo gmfxsdgxsfdh yfsdr zowo?!"(3)

"Hsvodto!" Seem barked. "Lfp xzwoo gwo rfodr xf wgto xzoj kfw xzo ygwe otf twlhxgv!"

The three monks didn't look happy with what Seem said but they nodded and turned and put their feet into the stirrups, ready to race. Seem turned back to Jak and Raye. "One of you can race on my Leaper mount."

Raye turned to Jak. "Well?"

"What?"

She shoved him toward the animal. "You're the racing expert."

The monk who had snapped at Seem smirked over his shoulder. "Scared to race us, little girl?"

Raye's eyes flared black. "What did you say?"

"Are you deaf as well as an abomination?"

Raye shoved Jak out of the way. "Move." She jumped into the saddle and swung her leg over.

Seem sent a glare at the monk who had spoken before stepping out from behind the Lizards. "Ready…" Fists clenched around the reins. "Set…" Raye leaned forward in her seat a little.

"Ride!" Daxter yelled. Four pairs of reins snapped and heels dug into the Leaper's sides.

"Come. We shall await them at the finish line." Seem said, starting to walk off.

Raye's POV

I was pushing my Leaper, well, Seem's Leaper, to its limits as I raced ahead of the monk who had insulted me. He glared at me as I caught up to him, and I smirked back.

"I will not lose to an abomination of dark eco!" He growled.

_'Raye, look out!'_ Ambika yelled. I looked down to see the monk slide his foot out of the stirrup and raise it to kick me. I stopped it a few inches away from my side and twisted it, shoving him back, away from me and off his mount. I turned back to the next ring and passed through it, feeling a slight tingle from the blue eco pulsing through the tangible screen. I barely paused to find the next ring (it's not hard to miss) and turned the Lizard around to hit it.

As I did, something slammed into me, hard enough to send me VERY close to falling into a cactus patch. Luckily, my momentum carried me past it and saved me from a very unwanted dosage of acupuncture. I looked up to see the monk smirk down at me before charging forward.

I growled and shoved myself up, ignoring the burning pain shooting through my arm and side. Leaping back onto the saddle, I shot off after him, the other two sitting in a stunned stupor behind us.

3rd Person

Jak and Seem waited beside the glowing-red ring that sat in the middle of the market. The female monk smirked as she saw a monk astride the back of the Leaper rounding the corner. The smirk disappeared as a familiar Leaper, her's to be precise, shot off the rocky hill and landed just ahead of the monk, the animal carried through the rind by its own momentum before Raye pulled the reigns to stop it.

Jak grinned at her. "Great job Raye."

Daxter grinned and turned to the monks who had stopped behind her. "Ha! We kicked your scaly tails!" One of the Lizards bit at him, barely missing his ear. "Back off, ya filthy animal!"

Seem glared at Jak. "Fine, hero... the Crystal is yours." She handed him the crystal, which was shaped like its dark counterpart, only with a differently shaped metal holding it. "The two types, light and dark, when combined form great energies. Be careful with them." She warned as Jak shook it, sending the glow inside all around it. "And when you die... do be kind enough to give them back."

He glared at her. "I don't plan on it. Why are you so obsessed with death?"

Seem pointed at the sky. "Because of that!" Jak and Raye followed her finger to a pulsing purple star-like object. "The Day Star approaches, and every day it grows brighter! This planet's final trial is coming!" Seen turned to her monks. "Tfjo."

There was a 'thump', and everyone turned to see Raye fall out of her saddle and onto the ground. "Raye!" Jak knelt down next to her and lifted her up. Daxter let out a curse. The bone of Raye's left forearm was poking through her skin, and there was a gouge out of her right side, staining her lavender shirt almost black.

Jak turned and looked at the monk who had pulled up behind Raye, and turned his eyes to his boot. Blood covered it. "Bastard!"

As he jumped up to probably throttle the monk, Seem stepped in front of him. "Tak, did you do this?" Seem gestured behind her.

Tak didn't answer. Seem looked to the two behind him, who nodded. "We shall discuss this when we return to the Temple." She grabbed her Leaper's reigns. Then, over her shoulder, she looked at Jak. "Will she be alright?"

"Yeah." Jak answered curtly. Seem simply nodded before mounting her Leaper and riding off, the other three following her. Once they'd disappeared, Jak laid a hand over Raye's heart and sent a pulse of eco through her body. The protruding bone twisted like melting plastic and shoved back down where it belonged, and the skin pulled back together over it and the blood flow from her side stopped.

Raye's eyes opened halfway and she looked at him. "There must've been a less painful way of waking me up." She sat up, shoving his arms away.

"You alright?"

She rubbed her arm. "Fine, I think." She stood up as a beeping noise came from Jak's pouch. He pulled out the communicator and hit the 'talk' button. "What is it Kleiver?"

"_I've got a job for you rookies. Get to the Garage._" It shut off with an almost rude sounding click. The siblings looked at each other and shrugged.

"You up for it?" Jak asked.

Raye put her hands on her hips. "Jak, I landed on my arm, not my head. I can still reason perfectly well." She told him. "Let's go do this insane mission, whatever it is."

"Almost makes me miss the days when Torn was ordering us around." Daxter muttered as they walked toward the Garage.

--

Kleiver turned as Jak and Raye walked through the Garage doors. "You two looking for a bit of action? The scope shows a group of Metal Heads moving through the desert not too far from here. I don't like Metal Heads almost as much as I don't like you!" He held a meaty fist up to their faces. "And you've got some proving to do! Intercept those bad boys and give 'em hell. Who knows, you may even get a few toys for your effort." At the word toys, Daxter inwardly groaned. Jak and Raye were hooked now.

But still, he couldn't let them go on some dangerous mission (with him in tow, as usual) without complaining first. "Why does it sound like you're leaving out the dangerous parts?" He leaned toward Jak a bit more. "Jak, I'm getting some nasty JuJu vibes here. I don't have these whiskers for nothing, ya know..." He made some exaggerated whisker motions with his fingers. Raye laughed and tugged on one of the fine, almost invisible whiskers that sprouted from Daxter's cheek. "Ow!"

"You get bad vibes about everything we do." She chastised.

"I'm serious!" He protested, rubbing the spot Raye tugged.

Jak shrugged a little, just enough to throw Dax off balance. "Relax... we can handle a few Metal Heads."

Kleiver smirked as the words left the blonde ex-hero's mouth. "Have you ever seen a Wasteland Metal Head?" He questioned.

Daxter glared at him suspiciously. "No... why?"

Kleiver turned around with a shrug and started to walk back into the city. "Nothing. Just wondering. Use that one over there." He nodded toward a two-seated vehicle with a pair of guns mounted on the front bumper. Then, as the door to the city opened, Kleiver stopped and said, "Go get 'em, heroes."

Jak and Raye looked at each other warily as the large elf left, chuckling.

--

SC: Okay, I've finally got my, for lack of inspiring words, 'groove' back for writing, sort of, so I've recently updated everything now. (sighs) I just hope I get some reviews…

Ja ne

SC

PS: Cookies for anyone who can guess what the Seem and her monks were saying to her! Number your answers please! (that's what the numbers are for v)


	12. Metal Head Huntdown

Disclaimer: I don't own Jak and Daxter. If I did, do you think I'd be writing fanfiction about it?

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Chapter 12

THAT'S a Wasteland Metal Head?!

As Jak and Raye climbed into the vehicle, Raye looked over the dashboard. "Okay, what do all of these do?"

Jak shrugged. "Hell if I know. All I need to know is where the weapons are."

Raye grinned and pointed to a control on her side. "I believe these are what you're looking for."

There was a groan from Daxter. "Of course. Psycho sister gets the weapons." Raye smacked him.

"Look, there's one on Jak's side too, so he's got weapon control." She stated plainly. Sliding her goggles on, she grinned. "I'm just going to sit here and enjoy the ride.

Jak and Daxter both chuckled. "Good luck with that." Jak told her, pulling his goggles down and scarf up. Raye copied him, remembering that desert equals sand. And lots of it. Jak eased the car to the gates and pulled the Gate Pass from his pocket. The gates slid open with a hiss, and Jak stepped down on the gas pedal, shooting the car forward.

Raye fell back in her seat. "Shit, Jak! Give me some warning next time, will ya'?" She growled at him, sitting up and pulling on her seat belt. Over the sound of the wind, a normal person would not have been able to hear her words, but since the dark eco enhanced Jak's hearing so much, he heard her and smirked.

"Whatever you say, sis." He laughed, looking down at the in-dash map. There were four large, blinking green dots displayed on it. He turned the steering wheel to the right and headed for the large space between the two rock walls.

Jak braked when he reached the hill and they could see their targets. Daxter looked from Raye's face to Jak's, confused by the fear that he saw there. "What's wrong?" He looked out over the space that they were surveying. "They seem pretty normal sized to me."

Raye looked up at him, her usual annoyance at his stupidity absent from her face. "Dax… if they're that big from this far away, then how big do you think they are up close?"

Under his fur, Daxter paled. "Oh." He climbed off of Jak's shoulder and into Raye's lap, figuring out which place was probably going to be safer quickly. Raye picked him up and slid him under the seat belt next to her.

Jak looked over at her and the quivering Ottsel. "You ready to do this?" If Raye wasn't mistaken, she heard a slight shake in his voice.

Raye raised an eyebrow. "Am I ever?" Jak smiled a little before turning forward again and pressing down on the gas pedal. "Oh hell…" Raye whispered, her eyes widening beneath her goggles.

Even Ambika was wary. _'THAT is not a Metal Head. THAT is a goddamned dinosaur.'_

'Thank you so much for that reassuring support.' Raye answered dryly, her finger hovering over the button to fire the guns. "Jak, just tell me when."

"Wait for it…" He muttered, barely loud enough for her to hear. The Metal Head turned around and started to come back. Sensing a higher patch of heat, it turned its head, and a pale yellow eye spotted the Sand Shark.

_'It sees us!'_ Lykaios yelled.

"Now, Raye!" Jak ordered. Raye hit the button, and a twin pair of bullets began to fire out of the gun, pounding on the large skull gem on its head. It didn't seem to notice or care as it charged the car. Jak growled and threw the vehicle into reverse. Raye's hand slipped off the button as the car slammed into a rock outcropping, effectively braking. Daxter slid out from under the seatbelt and pressed it down, continuing the bullets pounding on the Metal Head.

Finally, the pressure was too much and the skull gem cracked into pieces and the bullets cut through the skin and skull and into the brain, resulting in instant death. The Metal Head fell onto the sand with a silenced thump, blood pouring out of its head and mouth. One of the dots on the map faded out of existence.

"One down, three to go." Jak turned and headed toward the next dot, which was just over the ridge.

"Look out!" Raye screamed as the Metal Head came up on their side. Lowering its head, it rammed into the Sand Shark, sending it flying. And, just to add insult, it shot a bomb out of the turret cannon on its back, causing the car to do several flips.

Jak fell out of the car as they slammed into the rocky cliffs that blocked their view of the city and dropped almost a story before landing, upside down, in the sand.

Daxter groaned and slid onto the ground with a thump. He had a serious case of whiplash. Something wet dropped onto his stomach and he opened his eyes and looked above him. Raye was unconscious, and had a gash on her temple the length of his arm. Her goggles had fallen off, the strap broken, and landed near him, one of the lenses gone. He winced as he saw that some of the shards had embedded themselves near her right eye. The side of the Sand Shark was pinning her left arm to her side, and blood was dripping off of it. He looked at the yellow fur on his stomach to see that it was stained red.

'Jak…' He thought, looking around. He crawled out from beneath the car to see Jak lying a few feet away, keeping himself somewhat upright with his arm. Even from a distance, he could see the violet sparks playing over various injuries. He ran over. "Daxter… are you alright?" Jak asked when he saw the blood on his friend's stomach.

He nodded. "Yeah, other than some serious whiplash I'm fine." He winced as he heard a bone snap back into place.

"Busted my leg when I landed." Jak muttered, standing. "How's Raye?"

"Unconscious and bleeding." That was all Daxter had to say before Jak scooped him up and ran over to the overturned vehicle. Jak peered under it to see Raye and cursed.

"Dax, can you get her unbuckled?" The Ottsel nodded and climbed up Raye's hanging arm and undid the seatbelt. Jak held her in her seat with one hand on her lap and the other behind her head before easing her down to lie flat on the sand. Pulling her out from under the car, he inspected her wounds, which totaled up to a broken arm, gash on her forehead, and her pants leg practically in shreds, along with most of the skin under it.

"Think you can heal her again?" Daxter asked.

Jak shook his head. "I don't have enough eco. But I CAN wake her up." Jak pressed two fingers up against the mark on Raye's hand. Raye jolted like she'd been shocked, but her eyes opened and she sat up.

"Ugh… what happened?" She pulled her hand away from her head and looked at the blood on her fingers, then looked at the car she was lying next to. "Oh, right." She focused, and the same violet sparks danced over her wounds, sealing them. Raye winced as the bone in her arm, which hadn't pierced through her skin this time, snapped back and place and mended together. "Both arms in one day." She muttered. "There must be something wrong with me." Jak helped her to her feet.

Both looked over at the Sand Shark. "Well now what do we do?" Jak asked. Raye paused.

"I think if we can get it flipped over, then it should still work." She said. "The engine's still running, and I don't think anything's damaged except for the door." Jak nodded and walked to the other side of the car with her.

"On three?" He asked. Raye nodded and gripped the roll cage. "One…" Small, violet lightning bolts coursed down their arms. "Two…" Raye tightened her grip. "Three!" Both pushed the car up with all their strength, and the Sand Shark flipped over, back onto four wheels. Jak inspected the side that had been rammed and winced. "There's no way you can get back in here Raye."

A surge of eco at his back made him turn around. _"Yeah, we kinda realized that."_ Ambika grinned at him. _"I'll go after them from the air; just make sure not to get hit again."_ Jak nodded as Ambika took off. After picking Daxter back up, he climbed back in the Sand Shark and turned it toward the one of the green dots.

Ambika glanced over her shoulder as she heard the sound of the twin chain guns firing on one of the Metal Heads. Turning to face forward, she landed on the back of another, digging her claws into the gun on its back. _'Let's see how much it likes to fire those pretty little bombs when they're firing into his spinal cord!'_ She crushed the gun between her hands like an aluminum can, then leapt back into the air. The Metal Head roared in pain as the turret exploded, sending an extreme amount of dark eco through its spinal cord, severing it.

Ambika landed on the Metal Head's head, behind its eye. It growled and tried to snap at her, but thanks to her impromptu destruction of its spine, it couldn't move its head. Ambika pressed all ten of her claws on its throat and ripped it apart, letting its blood stain the sand. She absorbed as much of the eco in it as she could hold, grimacing as the blood stained her pale skin violet-red.

Jak looked down at the map as another one of the dots vanished. 'That just leaves one more.' He thought, driving around the gargantuan corpse that he had just taken down.

He nearly rammed into the cliff when Raye's voice sounded through his head. _'Jak?'_

He glared up at the black dot above him. 'Give me a little warning next time, would you?!'

_'Sorry. I didn't expect you to nearly drive into the cliff.'_ She chuckled. _'Anyway, Ambika just spotted the last of the Metal Heads and… well… it's a little bigger than those last three.'_

'Raye, define 'a little'.'

_'I would, but you're about to see it for yourself.'_ Jak looked up as he crossed over the next sand dune in front of him and hit the brake. The Metal Head that was standing there was exactly the same as the last ones, only about ten feet taller. Armor plated its entire body, except for its underbelly and eyes.

"Oh shit."

_'Move it stupid! It sees you!'_ Lykaios yelled. Jak floored the gas, shooting the car forward. _'Brilliant, let's go TOWARDS the giant Metal Head.' _

'Would you shut up?' Jak growled, looking along the giant body before him for a weakness.

Above him, Ambika was doing the same. She spotted her target; the back of its knee. _'Are you crazy?!' _Raye yelled.

'Yeah, probably.' Ambika answered before diving. She missed the left knee, which she was aiming for, but managed to slice through the most of the tendons in the right one, but was then hit by the mass of muscle known as the Metal Head's tail. She sat up about three yards away, spitting out sand. _"Lovely."_ She growled.

Jak drove along the length of the Metal Head's body. Even with one leg, it was still standing, albeit it wasn't going anywhere fast. When he reached its head, he held down the emergency brake and did a fast slide turn so that he was looking at the Metal Head's eye. "Say cheese." He growled, hitting the button to fire. The bullets cut through the pale yellow eye like a hot knife through butter, destroying the Metal Head's brain. Blood pouring out of the destroyed socket, the behemoth fell to the ground, two small items popping out of its armor on impact.

Raye walked over, herself again, and picked up the first. "It's another eco crystal." She murmured.

The second item suddenly began beeping, and a hologram of a head appeared above it. It appeared to be a mix of metal and flesh, but mainly metal. The hologram lost so many details, though, that the person, if it was a person, was unrecognizable.

"_Metal Head commander, report! What's happening? If you lost that cargo, and you're still alive, I'll kill you myself! I want every Dark Eco Crystal you can find! Time is short. Did you hear me?_" The hologram suddenly noticed Jak and Raye looking at it curiously. "_Wait! Not you! Aaaggh!_" It cut off as Jak stomped on the transmitter, breaking it.

"I don't like the sound of your voice." He growled.

Daxter grinned from Jak's shoulder. "Ha! You sure kicked sand in his face!" Then, as an afterthought to himself, he added, "Oh yeah, that was good."

Raye frowned. "That face… looked familiar… like I'd seen that person before…"

Jak nodded. "Yeah, I got the same feeling."

Daxter rolled his eyes and knocked them both on the head. "Now you two are gettin' paranoid. Come on, Big Foot, let's get back. This desert gives me the creeps." Jak and Raye nodded and turned back to the Sand Shark, Raye pocketing the crystal.

--

SC: Gah… why is it so hard for me to write on this lately?! GRRRRRR! (throws random item out the window)(explosion is heard) Whoops… anyway, read and review please!

Ja ne

SC


	13. Lyla's secret

SC: My parents are evil. They got a new HDTV for the living room, which I am watching right now, and it is so PRETTY! But the good news is we're getting Direct TV to replace our crappy ass cable, so I guess they aren't that evil.

--

Chapter 13

The Truth About Lyla

Jak helped Raye out of the Sand Shark after he'd parked it. "Get a little rough for ya', Sheila?" Kleiver smirked as he saw the blood on Raye's side. She smiled at him sweetly over her shoulder as they walked out the door.

"You might want to worry more about your car than me." Jak smirked as he heard Kleiver let out something that sounded more like a roar than a yell of anger before the door swooshed shut behind them. Raye sighed as she looked down at her outfit. "This is why I never wore light clothes in Haven; you can always see the blood on them." She looked at Jak's pants leg. "Your pants are ruined too."

Jak looked down at the red stain on his leg. "Yeah, but we can't exactly get new clothes all that easily."

"Raye?" Both looked up to see Lyla walking toward them. Raye rolled her eyes as Daxter started to stare.

"Hi Lyla." Raye smiled. "I, uh, kind of ruined your clothes. Sorry."

Lyla smiled. "No problem. But what happened? If you don't mind me asking."

"Kleiver sent us," She gestured toward herself and Jak, "Out to hunt some Wasteland Metal Heads. We kind of miscalculated how big they'd be."

Lyla laughed. "Don't worry about it." Neither of the siblings noticed how she was eyeing the bloodstains.

Jak elbowed Raye's side. "Raye, introductions would be nice."

She smiled at him sheepishly. "Oh, sorry. Lyla, this is my way-to-overprotective big brother, Jak. Jak, this is Lyla. She took care of me while I was unconscious."

Lyla smiled at Jak. "Pleased to meet you. Hey, if you guys'll come over to my place, I should have some clothes that you could change into."

"I don't know, I've already ruined one pair of your clothes…" Raye muttered.

_"Yeah, and you'll ruin it even more next time you turn into Ambika."_ Raye jumped a little as Jak's voice ran through her head. _"You obviously haven't looked at the back, have you?"_

She glared at him. _"Kinda hard when my head isn't capable of doing a one-eighty!"_ Then, turning back to Lyla, she smiled. "I guess it wouldn't hurt though."

Lyla smiled and turned around. "Follow me."

--

"My house is kind of divided between a house and a small hospital." Lyla said as the three walked inside. "I get donations for clothes, food, all sorts of things."

"Well, that certainly makes me feel better about ruining the outfit." Raye chuckled.

Lyla laughed. "Jak, there should be some guy clothes in the room across the hall." Jak nodded and walked out, pausing to grab Daxter from the doorway. She looked over at Raye. "You know, for twins, you two don't look a lot alike. What do your parents look like?"

Raye stiffened up, her fists tightening around the shirt she had in her hands. "We… we've never met our parents."

Lyla covered her mouth slightly. "I didn't mean to… I'm so sorry Raye."

Raye shook her head. "No, it's okay. You couldn't have known about it." She peeked out the door to make sure the one across the hall was still shut before shutting it and sitting down on the bed. "But, and you can't tell anyone this, they were supposed to be the King and Queen of Haven City before Praxis took over."

A curved eyebrow rose. "Really now?"

"Yeah, supposedly. When Jak was younger, before we even met each other, the Underground movement in Haven had found him wandering around the city, and he had the Seal of Mar around his neck."

Lyla turned and started digging in the drawers. A pulse of light resonated around the room, but Raye sat oblivious. "When did you two meet?"

"About three years ago, when we were eighteen. It's a long story. We were… you promise that you'll never tell anyone about this?"

"Of course." Lyla promised, her eyes glowing blue.

"Well, Jak was kidnapped from our parents when he was about three. They thought it would be best, and safer, for me if they sent me somewhere that I wouldn't be found. So they had Samos and Onin, they're friends of ours, send me to a different dimension, to Earth. I grew up there while Jak grew up in the past of this world." Raye swallowed. "I really shouldn't be telling you this. Jak's going to be furious."

"He won't know, I promise."

Raye smirked and shook her head. "You don't know Jak; he can probably hear me right now."

Lyla turned around, her eyes glowing. Raye gasped. "No, he really can't. Outside of this room, time has slowed down, your brother along with it." To demonstrate, she tossed a pebble out the window. As soon as it cleared the frame, it froze in mid-air. Raye stared at it and walked over to the window. Reaching out, she swatted the stone. It twirled forward in the air before slowing and stopping again, still not falling toward the ground.

She looked over at Lyla. "Wh-what are you?"

Lyla smiled, and a wave of blue sparks flew off her body, leaving an elf shape composed entirely of light. **"I am a Precursor."**

--

SC: Shortest. Chapter. Ever. Yeah, I know. Sorry! But I felt that it was a good place to stop it. I've had a thing for cliffhangers these past few updates. But the next chapter will be better, I promise. And I'll try to have it, along with the other stories chapters, posted within the next week. Read and review please!

Ja ne

SC


	14. More secrets

SC: To make up for the horrible shortness of the last chapter… here's a new chapter!

--

Chapter 14

More Secrets

Raye fell back against the wall, sliding to the floor. "You've got to be kidding me. I must be in a coma and hallucinating or something."

Lyla chuckled. **"No, I'm quite real."** Her voice was higher and clearer, and her laugh sounded like bells tinkling. **"I'm sorry I couldn't tell you earlier, but I had to make sure that you were who I thought you were. The mark on your hand told me that."**

Raye looked down at her hand. The mark was pulsing. **"No, no. Not that one. You remember the incident at the beach?"**

"You were the one who scratched me?"

She nodded. **"Yes. With the shard of a light eco crystal. I didn't expect your blood to react so… violently to it though."** She waved her hand over the bandages on Raye's left one. **"There. That should have fixed it."** Raye pulled to bandages away to see smooth skin.

"Okay, I believe you. I'm not hallucinating." She stood up so she was, er, eye-level with Lyla. "But I have some questions."

A warmth that could only be interpreted as a smile radiated from Lyla. **"It is only to be expected. Ask away."**

Raye took a breath, then paused and looked out to the room where Jak was. "Could you…?"

Another tinkling laugh.**"Of course. Jak may hear this too."** Another wave of her hand. Seconds later, Jak burst into the room.

"Raye, what's…?" He trailed off as his eyes traveled over to the floating figure of light standing in front of his sister.

**"Hello Jak."** Lyla greeted.

Jak nodded. "Okay. That would explain why Daxter's frozen."

Raye glanced at Lyla. She shook her head. **"I'm afraid I cannot allow Daxter to hear this. I am going to be in a great deal of trouble as it is if I should be found out. Now, Raye, I believe you wished to ask me some things?"**

Raye nodded. "Well, for starters, what the heck is a Precursor doing in an elf body?"

**"I have… borrowed it. Don't worry; it was with Lyla's consent."** She added after a moment. A more serious tone fell over the room.** "You two are very special. The balance keepers of the universe." **She touched them both softly on the cheek. **"I know your pasts have not been easy. But there is a greater evil that you must defeat now."**

Raye paused for a moment. "The person in the hologram." She muttered.

A slow nod. **"You have met him before."**

"Then can you tell us who he is?" Jak asked.

Lyla shook her head. **"I'm afraid I cannot. I am already breaking many rules by telling you these things."**

"Then why are you?"

A pause. **"Because you deserve to know."** She said after a moment. **"I do not believe that you should remain ignorant of your past or the future that will come into existence based upon your decisions."** She looked over at Jak. **"I know you do not wish to be the world's hero again, Jak, and it is your decision. I will not try to influence it."**

Jak didn't say anything. Lyla turned back to Raye. **"Is there anything else that you wish to ask me?"**

"Could… could you…" She glanced at Jak. "Could you show us our parents?"

Lyla seemed to be taken aback by the request. **"I… I cannot show you your father. But I can let you know your mother."** She clapped, and the sparks that flew from her hands formed into an image between the three. **"This is your mother, Sophia."**

Jak walked over next to Raye. "She's…"

"Beautiful." Raye finished. Sophia was Raye's height, maybe a half an inch taller. Dark emerald hair fell to her waist in a tight braid. She had a kind face with sharp features; high cheekbones, the same clear blue eyes that Jak and Raye both had, a small, pointed nose, and full, heart shaped lips. Raye had obviously inherited her frame, covered in wiry muscle, looking as though they could cause some serious damage if they had a mind to. The same long, thin ears that both twins possessed stuck out from the sides of her head.

Raye squeezed Jak's hand, blinking away tears. Jak smiled over at her. "You look like her."

"You're just saying that because I'm a girl and you aren't." She chuckled. Then, she looked at Lyla. "Why can't you show us our dad?"

**"I have shown you your mother because she…"** There was a pause, much like there would be from one biting their lip. **"Your mother died, just before you were sent to Earth, Raye. I showed you her because you will not be able to see her."**

Jak's grip on Raye's hand tightened. "Wait, are you saying that our dad is alive?"

**"Yes, he is. You've met him."**

"Who is he? Can you tell us?"

Lyla shook her head. **"Not a name, no. But I can tell you this: he was the ruler of Haven City. You two are the legitimate heirs to the throne there."** She suddenly looked up, startled. **"I've been found out. I must go."** She grabbed their free hands. **"Listen to me: whatever happens, do not give into the darkness. This new enemy must be destroyed before he can unleash his full power."** She hugged Jak. **"I will find a way to help you both if I can. I promise."** She hugged Raye next. **"Take care of your brother."** She whispered before stepping back and disappearing in an explosion of sparks. The blue tint around the room began to fade.

Raye turned to Jak. "You'd better get back before Daxter comes back to reality." He nodded and walked out. Raye shut the door behind him and went back to digging through the dresser. She pulled out a red tank top that dipped low in the back and slid it on after pulling off the lavender one. Something black caught her eye and she reached back into the drawer, pulling out a pair of gloves. She slipped them on, surprised at how cool they felt.

There was a knock on the door at that moment. "Raye, are you decent yet?" Jak called.

"Yeah, you can come in." Jak walked in, a serious look on his face.

Daxter looked from one twin to another. "God, why are you two in such a bad mood? Six seconds ago you were both fine."

Raye smirked a little at that. Six seconds ago? More like ten minutes. "It's nothing, Dax. Just… a little tired." Daxter looked past Raye's shoulder and groaned.

"Yeah? Well it's about to get worse. Flying rat, out the window." Raye and Jak turned to see Pecker land in the window.

"There you two are! Do you have any idea how hard it's been to find you?!" He complained.

"What do you want Pecker?" Jak asked, obviously less then happy to see him.

Pecker put his wings on his hips. "Damas wants to see you two in the Arena. Now."

Raye sighed. "Go tell him we'll be there as fast as we can." Pecker flew off and they headed toward the door.

They grabbed a pair of Leaper Lizards as they walked out of Lyla's house. "It's a good thing that she doesn't live too far away from the Arena." Raye muttered as she and Jak walked up the steps.

"Yeah, wouldn't want to keep Damas waiting." Jak responded sarcastically. Raye laughed as they headed inside. Daxter laughed too, just relieved that his friend's gloomy moods were gone.

Jak and Raye hopped over to the platform in front of Damas. He gave them a look that said that they had just made it before the crowd went wild. "Once again, you must test your fighting skills in the arena. Face down your fears, defeat those who oppose you, and we will see if your skills are of use to us. The purity of the arena is our only guide!" Jak and Raye gave each other a look that said they though Damas needed to get his head examined.

Daxter, who had seen this look quite clearly, decided that he needed to speak up and keep the two idiots that he considered family in a good mood. "Excuse me... Mr. Sand King... Yes, I'd like to place a complaint. We've been training hard. My feet are killing me, and I think I'm getting a hangnail. So maybe I'll just sit this one out..."

Damas tapped his staff against the metal platform his throne sat on. "Enough talk! The arena awaits!" They turned to walk away. "Wait." They stopped and Damas tossed them both a gun mod. "You'll need them."

Jak and Raye hopped onto the platform that would take them down to the Arena. "Okay, is it just me, or has His Majesty spent a little too much time in the sun?" Jak laughed.

"Nope, it's not just you." Raye looked down at the metal floating on the lava. "Why is there more than one Arena floor?" Instead of the round battleground that had floated on the lava last time, there were four separate squares of metal.

"Obviously some people have too much free time on their hands." Jak muttered, looking at the four boxes around the Arena.

Raye voiced his thoughts. "Four times as many matter formers… that means four times as much eco. And four times as much eco means…"

"Four times as many people trying to kill us." Daxter shivered. "Perfect."

Raye laughed at him. "C'mon Dax; where's your sense of adventure?" He glared at her. "Oh never mind." She sighed, jumping to the metal floor. "Let's just see how these guns work." She pressed the trigger and felt the gun begin to vibrate slightly under her hands. Taking a glance at the glowing barrel, she let go, and a concussion blast was released from the gun.

Jak grinned. "Nice." He jumped off of the elevator, watching as it sunk down into the lava behind him. Two locks clicked in unison, and the matter formers opened. Raye kicked the two Marauders that came out from the one above them into the lava.

"Might I suggest moving?" She asked sarcastically, moving from underneath the matter former that was resting over their heads. Just in time, too, because two more jumped out of both.

Jak shot them both in the back of the head, and they fell, disappearing into purple sparks. Both winced as the sparks sunk into their skin before continuing to shoot. The alarm sounded, and lava began to flood though the holes that had just opened. Daxter looked around to see that none of the other platforms were sinking. He tugged on Jak's ear.

"Jump onto one of the other platforms!" He ordered. Jak and Raye looked over at the other platforms before running and jumping to the other platform. The familiar click of the locks overhead alerted them to move away from the matter formers before they got squashed. Well, that and Daxter yelling in their ears. Yeah, they were surprised that they could hear the locks click too.

A pattern began to develop. Jak and Raye would shoot, the alarm would sound, they'd move, and then they'd start to shoot again. This continued until the Marauders stopped coming. They hopped across the gap between the platforms and onto the lift.

Pecker gaped at them as they walked in front of the throne. "I can't believe you two are still alive!"

Daxter, who could never resist irking the monkaw, smirked and leant up against Jak's head. "Yeah. What a surprise."

Pecker glared at him for a moment before turning back to Jak and Raye. "Damas and I are very impressed." He smiled, obviously fake, resting his wings over his stomach. Raye had to suppress a laugh. Pecker looked like a very small, very _feathery_ imitation of 'the Godfather.'

Thankfully, her attention was diverted by Daxter's protests. "Hey, feather butt, who appointed you king?"

"He did!" The monkaw snapped, pointing at the elf whose shoulder he occupied. Damas gave him a 'look'. "Well, almost. Kind of a semi-king, you know. You should see our sleeping quarters and his harem of love birds... oooh... I never get any sleep these days." Jak noticed Raye's look of disgust, a smirk on his face. That was Raye for you: once she got a grudge against someone, it took a LONG time for her to drop it. And Pecker certainly wasn't giving her any reason to do so anytime soon. "Hee hee... it's good to be the king, no?" Pecker asked the king, who actually smirked at him.

But a certain orange furball just couldn't let it go. He jumped down to the table in front of Jak and Raye. "I don't see no crown on that fat feather head!"

Pecker fluttered down to the armrest of Damas' throne. "You want a crown? I'll crown you! Don't make me come down there from this perch!" He threatened, shaking his fist.

Daxter glared at him. "I've got a perch for ya birdie, right here... twirl on it!" He lifted his hand, flipping Pecker off. A collective gasp went through the crowd assembled, and Raye had to fight an urge to kiss the little Ottsel.

Pecker gaped at his rival for a moment, then glared. "That's it! It's GO time!"

Dax smirked. "Bring it on, bird brain!" Pecker leapt at Daxter, and they proceeded to roll around, biting and kicking at each other until…

"Enough!" Damas shouted. Both stopped, looking up at him. Pecker had frozen in the act of biting Daxter's arm, and said Ottsel was pulling his other fist back to punch Pecker in the face. Thankfully, neither seemed to have any serious wounds. "If I wanted you to fight, I would have commanded it!" He looked up at Jak and Raye. "You two did... very well." Damas said awkwardly. "You make me proud... that our training program is so good." The last part seemed… rushed, almost, and Jak and Raye glanced at each other. "Here are your second Battle Amulets and new Weapon Mods. One more Arena win and you will be true Wastelanders!" He tossed said items down to them before standing and walking out, the curtain swooshing behind him.

Pecker glared at Daxter, mouthing 'This isn't over' before flying off after Damas.

On their way out of the Arena, quite a few people stopped them to say how much they enjoyed the fight. Jak grimaced, though, as he heard a pair of men talking. "… kinda hoping to see those demons again."

"Yeah, that woulda been some real entertainment." A pause. "Speaking of which, betcha that girl would give some real entertainment in be-" Then man cut off with a choked gurgle. This was caused by Jak's hand being wrapped around his throat, pining him up against the rough rock of the structure behind him.

"Jak!" Daxter gasped.

Jak ignored him, his eyes slowly being consumed by black. "If you want to keep your voice box, you will NEVER talk about my sister like that again. _Understand?!_" He snarled. The man's eyes were starting to bulge out of his head, and he was pulling uselessly at the infuriated man's fingers.

Raye ran over and pried her elder sibling's fingers away from the man's throat. "Jak, let go!"

Jak dropped the man, who landed in a heap, coughing and gasping for air. Raye tugged on his arm. "C'mon, Jak, let's go. Please." She begged. After glaring for another moment, he turned and let his sister pull him along. They walked in silence for a few minutes.

"I'm sorry." Jak muttered, breaking the awkward silence. "I just… what he said…"

Raye bit her lip. "Yeah, I heard him. I was just planning to ignore it. I had to do it all the time back in Haven."

Jak looked down at her, startled. She rolled her eyes. "Oh come ON, Jak. I work with a bunch of guys all day. Besides, they quit after I broke a couple of noses." She paused. "Mostly."

The blonde's jaw tightened. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I knew this is how you'd react." She sighed. "Look, it's in the past, and you can't do anything about it now. Besides," Raye smirked, "I take them as complements that I can stand up to Ashelin in the looks category."

Jak tugged her ear. "See, I can't say anything to that."

"Yeah, you're taken. Now see all the ladies cry and run away to burn pictures of Keira." Raye laughed. Jak flinched at the mention of the 'K' word. Raye sighed and kept walking until they reached Lyla's house.

Once the door was shut, Raye turned to Jak, hands on her hips. "Okay, we need to talk."

"About?" Jak asked, sitting down on the couch sitting in the middle of the room.

She looked up at Daxter. "Dax, could you…?"

"Say no more." Daxter told her, jumping off of Jak's shoulder and walking out of the room.

Raye sat down next to Jak and gripped his hand in hers. "How long is this aversion to hearing Keira's name going to go on? See? You just flinched again." Jak glared at her. "Jak, please."

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Yeah, well I don't care if you want to talk about it or not." Raye told him. Jak looked away from her. "Look, if it makes you feel any better, I know how you feel."

Jak rolled his eyes. "Yeah right. How would you…?" He turned back around to see Raye focusing on the floor. "Who?"

She blushed. "Wait, you think I meant…?" Raye laughed. "Oh Mar, you're an idiot. I don't have anyone special like you have Keira. I just meant that all my friends are back in Haven too." Raye hugged him. "If it kills me, I'm gonna make sure you see Keira again. Promise."

Jak hugged her back. "I'll hold you to it." A loud beeping filled the room. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me."

Raye laughed and pulled out of the hug. "We are just not allowed to have a 'moment', are we?"

"Nope." Jak responded sarcastically. He looked down at the map on Raye's wrist to see a blinking dot representing the Garage. "Dax, come on!"

Daxter slunk out of the adjoining room and climbed back up to Jak's shoulder. "Do the people around here not know the meaning of 'peace and quiet'?"

Jak and Raye looked at each other, then, with a grin, responded unanimously, "Nope."

--

SC: Okay, I felt like that was a MUCH better chapter than I've been spewing out lately. Sorry it took so long; I used the wrong Arena format (I used the third one instead of the second one). And to explain a few things:

Lyla isn't a Precursor. One is just 'borrowing' her body for a bit.

Yes, she just spilled that Jak and Raye are the legit heirs to the Haven throne. This is going to cause some… interesting scenes later, I can tell you that right now.

And Jak and Raye are NOT allowed to have a moment.

That's all. Read and review please!

Ja ne

SC


	15. Rescue mission

SC: I'm so proud of myself. I managed to squeeze a little brother/sister thing in there. I'm so happy. (lets out childish squeal) And I'm SERIOUSLY getting mad at the administrators. I haven't gotten any updates in weeks. If this has something to do with that stupid update for the e-mail addresses with a address, I'm going to be seriously pissed off. Is anyone else having this problem?

Disclaimer: Should I even bother? Mm, no.

--

Chapter 15

Rescue Mission

Jak and Raye walked into the Garage to see Kleiver standing next to one of his cars. When he saw them, he adjusted his grip on the large gun in his hands. "Damas has a job for us, but I'm no babysitter, so stay outta my way!" He threatened in a growl, tightening his grip on the gun.

Daxter glared at him. "Jak's not afraid of you... are ya, Jak?" The Ottsel asked nervously.

Kleiver smirked and rested his weapon on his shoulder. "If you knew what was happening out here, you'd be afraid all right."

Jak, Raye, and Daxter looked at each other, confused. But whatever questions they might have wanted to ask died as Damas walked up. "What's going on here?"

Kleiver smiled at the king. "Nothing, yer lordship. Just offering these two and the little one here," He scratched under Daxter's chin; Dax had to resist the urge to sink his fangs into the meaty digit, "Some healthy advice."

Damas put a hand on Jak and Raye's shoulders and steered them away from Kleiver. "You two have a reputation for being rash. Didn't your father ever tell you to pick your battles wisely?" At the word 'father', Daxter started shaking his head no. But it was too late.

Raye bit her lip and focused her gaze on the ground as Jak turned away from Damas. "We didn't know our father."

This seemed to startle Damas, but he shook it off quickly. "My point is, sometimes you face your enemy head on, and sometimes... you wait until his weakness is revealed." He clasped his hands behind his back. "Patience is a warrior's greatest weapon. Do you understand?" Jak and Raye nodded. "Good. Now, I want you and Kleiver to go into the desert and herd a group of lizards into a waiting transport. We must prepare for whatever lies ahead." He punched his fist into his palm. "I need all the resources we can gather. Six should be good, so split it between you."

Raye laughed. "No problem. We're good with animals." Daxter glared at her. Damas nodded, something with the semblance of a smile playing on his lips.

Kleiver hopped into the car behind them. "I'll see ya out there, 'chum'." He chuckled, hitting the gas pedal and shooting out the door.

"Jerk." Raye muttered, following Jak over to the Sand Shark. "Wow. Kleiver fixed this thing up pretty quickly." She said, examining where the spot where the car had been mauled by the Metal Head.

"Admire the handiwork later, get in now." Jak called from the other side.

xXx

It didn't take long for the sight of the ruined city that had been blinking on the map to reach Jak and Raye's sight. Raye looked over her shoulder. "The Marauders stopped following us." And it was true; the heavily armored cars had turned and were driving away as she said this.

"Huh. Wonder why." Jak murmured. Easing off the gas slightly, he kept going into the ruins. He braked as they entered the area that the pen was in. "Well, that's obviously where we need to get them."

"So, any thoughts on how to round up the Lizards?" Raye questioned.

Jak paused and looked up at Daxter. Daxter noticed this look after a moment. "Oh no. No way. I am not, I repeat, am NOT going to jump out of this car and onto some wild Leaper's back."

"Please Daxter?" Raye asked, giving him her best puppy-dog eyes.

"Nope. No way, that doesn't work anymore. And don't EVEN try the kiss thing."

Raye glared at him. "We can always just toss you out and drive off."

He considered this. "Okay. Find me a Lizard!"

Jak was grinning behind his bandanna as he spotted a group of three and turned sharply. "Get ready Dax."

Daxter climbed onto the roll cage. "Let's go." Jak managed to pull the Sand Shark up next to one of the three and Daxter leapt off the bar and onto its back.

The Leaper Lizard did not like this. It bucked and jerked around, trying to get the orange mass of fur off its back. Jak braked the car when the reptile tried to slam into it to get rid of Daxter. Finally, Dax seemed to get a slight amount of control and managed to steer it in toward the pen. Jak turned the car and got there first, hopping out and waiting by the controls to turn the electric fencing off. He hit the switch as Daxter rode in, forcing the Lizard through the archway.

Daxter hopped off its back and ran out to the Sand Shark. Jak turned the fence back on, penning the Leaper in.

"That's one down." Raye smiled at Daxter. "Two more."

Daxter groaned. "Great."

Ten minutes later, Daxter had rounded up another Leaper and was herding his third towards the pen. "Come on Dax!" Jak called. His finger hovered over the button to disengage the fence. He hit it seconds before Daxter would've hit it, frying himself and the Lizard.

The Ottsel pulled the reptile to a stop and thrust up his arms in a victory sign. "Oh yeah! That's right!"

Kleiver drove up, a netted Leaper in the passenger seat of his car. He pulled it out and set it in the pen, cutting the net away from it and walking out before it reoriented itself. Jak hit the button to charge up the fence before any of the five lizards inside got out. Daxter slithered underneath the lowest of the beams and climbed back up to Jak's shoulder. "I have to admit, you got some talent, kid." Raye grinned up at her brother. "Have another one of me vehicles, ya earned it."

Daxter interrupted before either twin could say anything. "Damn straight! Would it be too much to ask for a foot rub?" Kleiver growled at him. "Nope, didn't think so."

"How's this thing work?" Raye asked, examining the controls of the car the other elf had drove up in. Kleiver was only too happy to oblige and completely ignored Daxter.

Jak looked up at him. "Do you just lack that voice that tells you when to shut up and stop talking?"

"I'm not the one who has the voices in my head, buddy boy." He rapped a small fist on Jak's skull.

A light cough behind them made both turn. Raye was standing there, hands on her hips. "If you two are done, can we go?" Jak nodded and hopped back into the Sand Shark.

As they were driving back, Jak turned to her. "Since when are you into cars?"

"Since these ones are so much more interesting than the ones back home." Raye retorted, coughing slightly. "Ugh, damn sand." She tightened the bandanna over her mouth.

Daxter grimaced and climbed down into the seat. "Is it just me, or is the wind picking up?"

Jak squinted behind his goggles. "I think you're right." He pulled into the garage gratefully, hopping out of the car. He ran a hand through his hair, shaking out about a pound of sand. "Raye, I completely agree with you about the sand thing."

When he didn't get a response, he walked around to the other side of the car. "Raye, what's…?" He trailed off as he saw Lyla standing next to the doors. Daxter looked at them suspiciously.

Lyla walked over to them. "Damas wants to see you two. It's an emergency." Jak and Raye nodded and walked out.

As the doors slid shut behind them, Daxter shivered. "What was up with _that_?! I've never seen such a cold shoulder from you two!"

"It was nothing Dax." Jak muttered.

Daxter jumped down in front of them. "Nothing? Nothing?! You two were acting like this earlier, just before we had to go to the Arena. I wanna know what's going on, right now!"

Raye glanced over her shoulder. "Look, we'll talk about it later, all right Dax?" She bent down and picked him up, scratching his ears. "I promise." Daxter, seemingly satisfied with this promise, and the fact that his ears were being scratched, grew silent.

As they stepped into the elevator that would take them up to Damas' throne room, Raye placed Daxter back on Jak's shoulder. He pouted as they began to rise up, grumbling about something or other, now that he was done being babied. When the elevator stopped, Jak and Raye could see Damas sitting in his throne, speaking loudly, but not quite yelling, into what could only be the Spargus version of a city-wide intercom system.

"Attention all people of Spargus. A large storm is heading our way!

Prepare the city!"

He turned and walked over when he saw Jak and Raye. "You wanted to see us?" Raye asked.

Damas nodded. "There are four Wastelanders out there who still have not reported in. I want you two to go out and find them. Do whatever it takes to bring them back!" He paused. "You'll only have so much time, depending on how quickly the storm moves, and you'll each have to take a car. Now get going."

They nodded and turned back around to the elevator, disappearing through the hole in the floor. A few minutes later, he could see what he assumed to be the Dune Hopper and the Sand Shark driving into the swirling winds.

He turned around, reaching for his gun as the elevator began to rise up again. Lyla burst into the throne room before it was fully raised and the king's hand dropped to his side. "Damas, please say you haven't sent Jak and Raye out yet!"

"They left a few minutes ago. Why, is something wrong?"

Lyla shook her head, biting her lip nervously. "Kleiver just checked the scope; something big is out in one of our patrol paths. We… we think that Kartem is dead."

xXx

"Raye, you doing all right?" Jak called through the communicator built into the dash.

"_Define all right, because if you don't stop talking to me, I'm going to end up swallowing another pound of sand._" Jak smirked. "_So stop talking to me and go after the little green dots on your map._"

"Got it, Commander." He replied sarcastically. There was a pained silence on the other end before there was a nearly silent click.

_'Ooh. Nice.'_

'Shut up Lykaios.' Jak growled, heading toward the first of the dots. He spotted the first Wastelander quickly, and pulled up beside him.

"Thank the Precursors." He gasped, climbing in.

Jak spun the wheel around, pushing down on the gas. "Hold on!" As he began to drive back, he saw another car fly over his head, with several, much more heavily armored ones going after it. The Dune Hopper landed with a bounce, though half of the Marauder cars following it weren't so lucky, and did a quick one-eighty turn.

An explosion momentarily blinded Jak, but after it cleared, he saw that Raye had already gotten to the transport. She waited until the man she'd dropped off was inside before spinning around and driving off.

The communicator clicked on as the Wastelander that he'd picked up climbed out. "_I'm gonna go for the one out by the Oasis._"

"Got it." He turned from the one Raye was going after.

After he'd picked up the third Wastelander and dropped him off at the transport, Jak waited for Raye. After she didn't show up for a few minutes, he groaned and slammed on the gas pedal. "You think she's in trouble?" Daxter asked. He was curled up behind Jak's neck, trying to avoid the worst of the winds.

"Knowing Raye? Yes." A warning sign flared through his skull as a burst of dark eco came from the direction he was driving in. Jak's eyes widened and he drove faster, any Marauder daring to get in his path receiving an unceasing round of bullets to eat into their vehicles.

He reached the Oasis to see the Dune Hopper, parked about five yards away from Raye, who was fighting… with another Dark Maker satellite. Jak slid the Sand Shark to a stop and jumped out, jolting a protest out of Daxter, and ran over, drawing his Blaster while he did. "Raye!"

She looked over at him. "Ja-aaarrggghh!" She fell to the ground as the satellite shot several lasers out of its underside and on left a burning trail across Raye's right arm. Her Blaster fell to the ground next to her as she cradled her disabled hand close to her chest.

Jak aimed the laser sights on the satellite and pulled the trigger several times. Each time, the bullet bounced away, highlighting a glowing shield. He growled and rolled past the lasers, pulling Raye to her feet. "Can you stand on your own?"

She nodded, still cradling her wrist. "That thing… it's shooting dark eco… but it burns, Jak. It burned me with dark eco!" She showed him the blistering band on her forearm.

Jak's eyes widened behind his goggles. "But… how?"

Raye shook her head. "I don't know, but I'm not staying under this thing for much longer!" She moved her Blaster over to her left hand, holding it awkwardly. Taking a couple steps back, she ran out from the ring of lasers, just as they disappeared. Jak looked up at the satellite to see it hovering in place. Deciding that Raye had a good idea, he followed her.

Seconds later, it dropped from the air, and a series of small guns clicked out from its sides. A burning ring of fiery bullets flew out from these guns, forcing the twins into the air. Another burst fired off a second later, then another.

"How long is it going to keep this up?" Raye growled, ducking behind a tree.

Jak reloaded his Blaster. "I've got an idea." He peered out from behind the rock he was using as a shield to see the satellite fire off another round of bullets. The shield didn't appear this time, and the bullets cut through the metal like they would flesh, with only slightly more resistance.

He smirked at Raye over his shoulder. She laughed. "You're insane!" But she had already run up next to him, firing her gun. Several bullets later, the guns were pulled in, and something that resembled a whip shot out of the satellite. Raye ran forward, jumping over the tentacle/whip as it shot underneath her, skimming the sand. Jak followed suit soon after, jumping and dodging the tentacle shot around on the ground, trying to hit them.

That's when Jak noticed it; the pulsing red light under the belly of the beast. "Raye, we need to get this thing back in the air."

Raye looked at him like he had just suggested that they go hug the dark satellite and do a happy little dance whilst they did so. "You're joking, right?"

"Just do it!" Raye shoved her gun back into the holster on her belt before closing her eyes.

Ambika growled as the wind whipped around her. _"What do you want me to do, genius?"_

Jak looked over at her, his own eyes blackening. "Just get it back in the air." Ambika nodded and ran toward their enemy, leaping on top of it. Digging her left claws in, she used her free hand to rip at the armor. Unfortunately, it did almost as much damage to her hands as she did to it, cutting her knuckles open with every punch, sending red-violet blood flying into the storm. Eventually, the satellite got sick of its little ride-on, and shot up into the air, slamming its 'head' into the ground.

Lykaios' head shot up at the scream of pain. _"Ambika!"_

He didn't get a response. Daxter decided that now was probably a good time to run over to Ambika's unconscious form.

Lykaios' lips pulled back in a snarl. He _was_ just going to shut this thing down. Now? Now, he was going to tear it to pieces. With a roar, Lykaios leapt at the satellite, climbing up the wires and such hanging down from the main body.

He stopped just below the shield, pulling his right hand back. Purple lightning began to crackle around his fist and he slammed it into the shield. He choked back the growl of pain that was growing in his throat, pushing his hand farther into the shield. It bent and strained against his claws, but finally gave. Lykaios' hand shot forward, tearing at the circuitry in the satellite's underside. Finally, his talons reached the pulsing red light Jak had seen earlier. Wrapping his hand around it, he squeezed, shattering it easily.

The eco demon jumped away as the machine began to shudder violently, grabbing Ambika and jumping away. A blast of scorching air burned his exposed skin as the satellite exploded into bits, and bits of shrapnel embedded themselves in his back. He could feel Daxter shaking against his chest and set Ambika down. Daxter climbed back onto his shoulder, looking down at Ambika. "Is she all right?"

Lykaios frowned. _"I'm not sure…"_ He lifted his sister's right hand up and placed it over the mark on his forearm. A burning pain shot through the left half of his chest, but the wounds covering Ambika's body disappeared, and he could hear the bones snap back into place, just barely, over the storm.

Her eyes fluttered open. _"Ugh… next time, YOU get to ride the giant machine of death."_ She muttered, sitting up and turning into Raye as she did. Her eyes widened and she scrambled over to the Dune Hopper. Jak followed her to see the fourth Wastelander lying in the passenger seat.

Raye leaned over and placed two fingers on his neck. "He's still alive, but he's fading fast. We've got to get him back to Spargus."

Jak nodded and started back to the Sand Shark. "I'll keep the Marauders off you."

Faintly, he thought he heard Raye mutter, "If they're crazy enough to still be out here, anyway."

--

Kleiver shook his head. "I don't think they're comin' back yer lordship. We should lock the gates and-"

Damas glared at him. "We will give Jak and Raye more time."

Lyla looked up at him. "Damas… it's been almost fifteen minutes. No one's ever survived that long in a storm. There's no way-" She stopped as the gates slid open.

"Move!" Damas ordered. All three jumped to the edges of the room as the Dune Hopper and Sand Shark literally flew through, nearly crashing into the other cars and the wall.

Raye kicked open her door and fell out of the Dune Hopper. Lyla ran over and tried to help her up. Raye shrugged her off. "Don't worry about me." She motioned over her shoulder, back into the car. Lyla looked up and let out something that was between a gasp and a scream.

"Kartem!" She ran over to the other side of the car and wrenched the door open. He fell into Lyla's arms.

Damas turned to Kleiver. "Get the medics in here. Now!" Kleiver nodded and ran off. Then, the desert king walked over to Raye. Blood was beading up in many places over her face from the whipping sands attacking her skin. Her breathing was hoarse, probably because her bandanna was wrapped around her forearm instead of over her mouth. Damas reached his hand down in an offer.

Raye lifted her head, somewhat confused. Damas? Offering her help? Weakly, she lifted her arm and took his weathered hand, letting him pull her off the ground. She fell up against the car, her legs weak.

Jak walked over, past Damas. "Raye, what's wrong?"

She looked down at her arm, more specifically, at the bandanna wrapped around it. Jak removed it carefully, gasping as he saw the burn. Or, what used to be a burn. The bright red-pink skin was now a pulsing violet-black, darker than any bruise either twin had ever received.

Damas looked up as Raye's muscles shook violently, catching her as she collapsed.

Hefting her up, Damas nodded for Jak to follow him. "What happened?"

"We found one of those satellites down by, uh, Kartem, I guess. One of its lasers hit Raye." Damas nodded, somehow managing to understand everything in those two sentences.

Kleiver chose that moment to run back in, with several elves behind him. Three ran over to Kartem, lifting him up and onto a stretcher. Two more walked over to Damas. "We'll take her now, my lord." One murmured respectfully.

Damas shook his head. "I'll take her."

Jak and the medic looked at him surprisingly. Damas gave them both a 'look'. "I doubt that we have anything in our supplies that will help with Raye's condition." He looked over at Jak and nodded toward the door slightly before he started to walk out. Jak jogged to catch up with him.

No one, not even Daxter, spoke a word as they walked to the Palace. Once they got onto the lift, Jak looked over at Damas. "Why are you helping her?"

Damas looked down at him. "Why are you asking?"

Jak looked away, a little embarrassed for having said anything. "It's just… you didn't seem to like Raye much."

There was a moment of consideration before Damas answered. "She risked her life to save one of my men."

Jak didn't reply, just stared at the wall in front of him until it turned into the scenery of Damas throne room. Daxter looked over at Damas. "Um, shouldn't we have taken her to, like, a medical place or something? Not that the throne room isn't nice and all…" He added hastily after Damas glared at him.

Damas turned to Jak. "Take her." Jak did so quickly, watching as Damas waded through shin-deep water and pulled a stone out of one of the pillars. When he came back, he was carrying a glowing blue cloth.

Jak felt the familiar tingle of eco as Damas brought it closer. "Blue eco?" He muttered.

"From what I've seen, you and Raye both have a remarkable rate of recovery. The blue eco should disperse the dark eco through her veins faster and take care of the burn." He laid the cloth on Raye's arm and sparks shot out of it. After a moment, Damas pulled it away, revealing the quickly shrinking burn. With a contented smirk, he looked up at Jak.

"Take her to Lyla; the best thing for your sister now is just resting." Jak nodded and carried Raye out.

--

SC: And this would be the long, long, LONG overdue chapter of Unwanted Demons, Unthought of Angels. Yes, I know that it has been a long time since I updated last, but I can't help it! I've been having some serious family issues lately, like my dad calling me while he was drunk… yeah, I know. You guys don't need to hear me bitching. Well enjoy the chapter! Three reviews before I update!

Ja ne  
SC


	16. Stupid monk architects

SC: Eh heh… um… hi?

--

Chapter 16

To Monk Temple!

It took almost the rest of the day for Raye to wake up. She turned her head to see Jak asleep in the chair by the side of the bed she was laying in and had to smile. 'That's my big brother.' She chuckled, sitting up, being careful not to disturb Jak. Mar knew that he deserved to take a nap.

Moving with inhuman silence, she slipped out of the room, glancing over her shoulder as she walked out the door. 'Good, still asleep.' She turned, barely suppressing a yelp of surprise when she saw Lyla standing there. "I'm sorry." Lyla murmured.

"Don't worry about it. I should've been paying attention." Raye replied, her voice taking an icy tone.

"I understand that you're mad at me, Raye. You have reason, I suppose."

Raye's glare didn't waver. "Trusting me and Jak with one of the biggest secrets in the universe is kind of something for me to get mad about."

Lyla's gaze fell to the floor. "I am sorry for putting you through this, really."

Raye's glare softened. "It… it's okay. How's Kartem?"

"He's not doing well." Lyla said softly, tears in her eyes.

"Lyla… you love him, don't you?"

Lyla nodded. "Yes. I do."

Raye put a hand on Lyla's shoulder. "I wish I could help… I do, but… my healing power would just make him worse."

The precursor possessed woman smiled at her. "It's all right, Raye. He'll pull through. He always does." With that, Lyla turned and walked down the hall.

Raye watched her go, looking over her shoulder as the door creaked open. "Raye…? What're you doing up?" Jak asked, rubbing his eyes wearily. Raye let out a small giggle at her brother's appearance. Disheveled quite accurately described him at the moment. Raye walked over and smoothed out his wrinkled shirt.

"I'm fine, Jak. Really, I-" She turned toward the end of the hall to see Lyla walking toward her, something clutched in her fingers. Her eyes were wide with fear.

Lyla held out the thing toward Raye. "Kartem had it in his bag." She whispered.

Raye and Jak both looked down to see a dark eco crystal sitting in Lyla's palm. Raye took it from her just before Lyla collapsed. Jak caught her easily, hefting her up much like Damas did for Raye. Kleiver walked out into the hall, sighing as he saw the unconscious woman.

"Not again… bring 'er in here." He told Jak, motioning to the room across the hall from the one he'd just exited.

"'Again'?" Raye questioned.

Kleiver shook his head. "She wears herself out until this happens. Does it all the time."

"That can't be healthy." Jak muttered.

Raye turned to Kleiver. "Kleiver, about that place you were telling me about; the Monk Temple? Where is it, exactly?"

Jak looked at her suspiciously as Kleiver walked over to a map hanging from the wall. "Here. Why?"

Raye smirked at him. "Mind if I borrow the Dune Hopper?"

.o0o.

I heard Jak walk out of Lyla's house behind me. "Raye! Raye, would you hold on?!"

I stopped. "What?"

"I know that look." He told me simply.

"What look?"

"The one that says that you're plotting something."

Daxter's eyes widened. "You're going after that monk, aren't you?"

"I don't have any idea what you're talking about." Raye said flatly, her eyes betraying her lust for vengeance.

"Raye…" Jak warned.

"Oh, don't EVEN use that 'I-am-holier-than-thou' tone with me." She interrupted. "Do you not remember that you and I both had a serious revenge complex for almost a year against Praxis and Errol?"

"Who are both dead now. And we wanted them dead for doing much worse than cheating to try and win a race. A race that you won, may I remind you."

"He made me _bleed_, Jak. No one's done that and lived." Jak crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "You don't count; you're my brother, I can't kill you."

Jak put a restraining but gentle hand on her shoulder. "Raye, we can't get caught up in this again. That's how we got banished from Haven in the first place."

"No, we got banished because I got stupid." She muttered. Jak could see the tears forming in her eyes and wrapped his arms around her. Raye buried his face in his shoulder. "If I had just-"

He stopped her. "It's not your fault, Raye. No one blames you."

Daxter migrated from Jak's shoulder over to Raye's. "Pecker probably does, but his opinion doesn't matter." Raye smiled up at him, wiping the moisture from her eyes.

"Heh. Thanks Dax." She gave him a quick pet before letting him go back to his usual place with her brother. "And no, it wasn't just because of that monk. I feel like there's some reason that we should go there. Like the Oracle back in Haven."

Jak raised an eyebrow. "Really? I haven't felt anything."

Raye turned away from him. "I… I don't know how to explain it. It's like…" She shook her head. "Look, we just need to go to that temple. That's all I'm saying."

Jak laid a hand on her shoulder, smiling at her. "I never said that I didn't believe you. Let's go."

--

"Jak?"

"Yes?"

"What do you think you're doing?" Raye was standing outside of the driver's side door, her arms hands on her hips, staring at her brother.

"Getting in the car."

Raye smiled at him sweetly, but Jak could see the glint in her eyes that meant nothing but bad news. "I'm driving."

Both Jak and Daxter's jaws dropped at this little declaration. "You're what?"

"I. Am. Driving. Got it?" She asked. "Now get up before I'm seriously forced to move you and destroy your fragile male ego."

Jak, reluctantly, gave up his seat to his sister, walking over to the passenger side. "Raye, do you even know how to drive anything other than a Zoomer?"

She rolled her eyes. "Jak, back on Earth, these kinds of cars were the only ones that they have. I had my driver's license, you know."

"Really?" Jak asked, not knowing this.

Raye bit her lip as she turned the keys and the engine roared to life. "Weeellll… my learner's permit. But I was only a few weeks away from my license. Besides, Kleiver's explained how the car works." She glanced at Jak's seat belt. "You might want to put that on. Trust me." Jak raised an eyebrow but buckled it just as Raye floored the gas.

Jak let out a curse. "Damn Raye! Would you-" He got caught off as a fair amount of sand went down his throat. Coughing, he pulled his bandana up and quickly tugged his goggles down after. "Would you watch it? These things can only go so fast and-" The next part of Jak's sentence WOULD have been 'you're severely pushing it', if Raye hadn't chosen that exact moment to demonstrate why the vehicle they were in was called the 'Dune Hopper.'

As they landed, Raye was laughing insanely and Jak looked like he was about to throttle her for that little stunt. "I swear, if you don't do it first, I'm going to kill you." He growled.

"Mm-hmm, love you too Jak." She responded, still smiling widely under her bandanna.

"Marauder!" Daxter suddenly yelled.

"Ooh, fun!" Raye laughed. "Jak, you have weapon control. Just push the button." Jak looked at her oddly, like he expected the car to explode and wipe out the three Marauders in a kamikaze inferno, but did so anyway.

_'Well, there WAS an explosion.'_ Lykaios offered as the grenade blew up two of the three monstrous cars. The third veered out of the smoke uncontrollably, and into a rock, graciously saving Jak the trouble of launching another grenade at it. This pattern of Jak firing while Raye drove continued, unless latter elf got a sudden urge to jump an enemy and send them crashing into the pursuing cars, until Raye suddenly hit the brakes.

"Raye, there are three Marauders behind us. _Why are you stopping_?" Jak hissed.

"You're really not gonna like this." She told him, pointing at the scene in front of them. Jak followed her finger to a series of islands that led to what appeared to be a mountain. Then he looked down at the map to see that the 'mountain' was in fact the Monk Temple, and he realized what Raye was going to do.

"Oh." Jak slumped down in his seat. "If I puke, I'm puking on you."

"I can solve that problem by ripping your stomach out if you so much as try." Raye responded sweetly.

Daxter whacked both of them on the head. "Uh, hello? Earth to Jak and Raye, there are three very angry Marauders behind us and- ah!" He jumped as a red bolt scorched his back.

"Daxter!" Jak cried, pulling the Ottsel down from his shoulder. Just in time, too, because Raye slammed the pedal down and sent them flying toward the edge of the cliff. Just before they hit it, she released the 'jump' button and sent the Dune Hopper flying into the air, clearing the large gap and landing safely on the little islet, away from the Marauders.

They all just sat there a moment, catching their breath. "Well," Raye said somewhat cheerily, drumming her fingers on the steering wheel. "That wasn't so bad, was it?" Jak glared at her. "I'll take that as a 'yes, it was so bad'." She got the car going again and proceeded toward the opposite side of the islet.

--

"I think we're here." Raye said, pulling the Dune Hopper to a halt as a line of pillars reached her eyes.

"Thank Mar!" Daxter moaned, collapsing in his seat. Well, Jak's seat. Whatever.

"You're going through withdrawals; that is so not my fault." Raye retorted, climbing out of the car. Jak hopped out, scooping up the complaining Ottsel and following his sister to the large set of doors past the pillars.

"Now what?" Raye asked. Her question was answered a moment later as the doors slid open. Jak smiled at her and bowed overdramatically.

"Ladies first."

Raye rolled her eyes. "Oh please. Daxter's more of a 'lady' than I am. But it's the thought that counts." She gave him a peck on the cheek before walking inside. She gasped. "Whoa…"

Jak walked next to her, following her gaze upward. The sky looked very, very far away through the open mountain top far above their heads. Daxter whistled. "Wow, hate to have to go up there."

Raye smiled. "Then be glad we don't have to go up there." She walked over to the doors on the opposite side of the room. "Look, more doors!" She laughed.

"Raye, be careful." Jak warned, eyeing the eye that seemed to be almost guarding the door. It was tracking Raye's movements across the room. Its thin pupil widened as she came closer, and Jak picked up the slightest 'click' from somewhere beneath the floor. "Raye!"

He ran forward and grabbed his sister's shirt, pulling her back just as a huge, spiraled stake shot up from the floor, along with about twenty others, blocking the passage to the door. "Thanks." Raye breathed, staring at the spot she'd been standing in a moment ago.

"No problem." He told her, pulling her to her feet.

Raye sighed and looked over at Jak. "So… what now?"

Jak looked up pointedly until Daxter and Raye both got what he was trying to convey to them. "Are you kidding?" Raye asked. "Up there?"

Daxter rapped a fist on Jak's forehead. "Jak, how do you plan on getting up there? Raye's the one who can fly, not you."

"No, Ambika can fly, not me. Do you see wings?" Raye asked, spinning around.

Daxter stuck his tongue out at her. "You know what I meant."

Jak coughed, pulling their attention back to him. "Well, we could always climb." He suggested, motioning to the block in front of them.

Raye and Daxter glanced at each other. "You know, I think I'm with Daxter on this one." Jak crossed his arms stubbornly. Raye pouted. "Jaaaaaaak… you KNOW I'm afraid of heights!"

"I'm not going to let you fall. Besides, you have Ambika." He walked away and climbed onto the first step of many that they were going to have to take.

Raye huffed, following after him. "Yeah, but what happens if I hit the ground first?"

--

SC: Okay, I've been sick for two weeks. Leave me alone. And right now I'm hyped up on like five different medications and really out of it, so don't be surprised if this chapter is a bunch of crap. Review please!

Ja ne

SC


	17. The Volcano

SC: Okay, I am beyond annoyed, bordering the verge of mad. I know I'm taking a while with updates, but seriously. No reviews for TWO chapters? Come on guys. That's seriously cold. And I KNOW that the chapter is at least getting read by a few of you.

--

Chapter 17

The Volcano

"Why do I have a feeling that this is a bad idea?" Daxter questioned Jak as he hopped from platform to platform, Raye a few behind him.

"Because you have a bad feeling about everything?" Jak questioned, hopping onto the next platform. A soft crack, clear as day to Jak and Raye's enhanced senses, issued forth as his feet touched the seemingly hard stone. Jak let out a curse and leapt again as the stone crumbled, his fingers clutching the flagpole feet away. He fought to keep his grip on the slick metal, a fight that he was quickly losing.

"Raye!" He yelled.

"Hold on!" She snapped back, doubled over. She didn't wait for the transformation to finish, just until the wings unfolded from her back, before leaping into the air and grabbing Jak under the arms. She quickly deposited him on the next platform and, after making sure it was stable, landed next to him.

"Are you all right?" Jak asked. "You've never done just the wings before."

Raye looked over her shoulder at the leathery wings attached to her shoulder blades. "I didn't know I could. I was just so worried you were gonna drop."

Jak grinned at her wryly. "I would've survived."

"Oh really?" She asked, crossing her arms. "Then why'd you call for help?" Jak's face tinted red under his tan as Raye and Daxter laughed.

Daxter punched his friend's forehead lightly. "Ah, we're just teasing ya' Jak. Now let's go before my stomach catches up to us."

"Looks like I'm not the only one with height problems…" Raye chuckled as they continued their climb.

Another story (or two) and several more collapsing platforms later, Jak and Raye were hauling themselves over the edge of Monk Temple's highest platform. The sight that greeted them was an old glider of some sort.

"Ooh, sweet!" Daxter said appreciatively.

Raye walked over to examine it. "Wow, this thing is ancient. Wonder what it's doing here…"

Jak crossed his arms. "Seem did say that they lost an expedition of monks on the Volcano." He looked out across the Wasteland to see the huge form of the lava-spewing mountain not too far away, with dozens of bright blue, ring-like shapes between it and the Temple. "They must use gliders like this one to reach the top."

"Hold it!" Daxter jumped down from Jak's shoulder. "I know that look!"

"What look?" Both asked innocently, not managing to suppress the grins on their faces very well.

"That look! Did you not listen to what you just said? 'Lost' is the operative word in that sentence. If they vanished, don't you think that just maybe that was a sign? Hello!"

"Yeah, but you've got me." Jak pointed out. "All we have to do is hit those accelerator rings, and we're golden!" He pointed out to the first of aforementioned rings.

"Oh no! See any feathers here?" Daxter asked, raising his arms and turning around, stopping with his back to Jak. "Looks like fur to me! No feathers, no flya-da-Ottsel! There's NO WAY you're gonna get me on some Precursor Monk crap." Jak and Raye grinned at each other as Daxter continued to rant, oblivious. "Absolutely zippo chance! Forget it! Finito! Fat chance! Not gonna happen! Nope! Nuh-uh! Never!" At this last word, Jak's hand grabbed the scruff of Daxter's neck, lifting him up to eye-level.

"Dax," Jak started, "You've got two options. Either you fly on the glider with me, or-"

_"You fly with me."_ Ambika grinned, stepping out from behind Jak. Daxter looked from Jak to Ambika and back again several times before…

"Jaaaaaaaaaaak!" Daxter yelled as the Monk Glider, carrying both he and Jak, fell over the lip of the platform. It straightened out quickly as the wind picked up under its wings, and Jak used the relatively simple controls to aim it for the first of the rings.

Ambika flew up next to him. _"Hello boys. Are we enjoying ourselves?"_ Jak just grinned at her in response. She laughed and dipped into a dive, soaring back up past him on his other side a moment later.

Daxter rolled his eyes and huddled down further on Jak's back. "At least someone's having fun."

Jak grinned back at him. "Aw, c'mon, Dax. Just relax and enjoy the view." At that moment, he made a sharp turn to hit the next ring, causing Daxter to yelp. The Ottsel grumbled and slipped underneath the straps holding Jak's Morph Gun to his back as the elf laughed.

After another few minutes of flying, Ambika flew up under him, on her back. "Show off!" He called down.

She grinned at him. _"Jealous!"_ Her demeanor quickly grew serious. _"I went up and checked the entrance. Once you get inside, it's a pretty steep dive, so be careful. That thing isn't the most maneuverable piece of equipment. And it won't help that there's an accelerator ring just in front of it."_

Jak nodded. "Got it." He looked up and slid the glider over a few feet to get a clear entrance into the opening, feeling the rush of blue eco as he passed through the ring. Ambika was right; once he'd cleared the mouth of the entrance, a rock wall rushed at him, and fast. He pulled back on the wheel and the glider's nose practically fell down toward the ground.

Just before the glider crashed into the ground, Jak pulled the nose back up, crashing it, instead, into the higher part of the wall. This of course, posed no problem for Jak, who used the wooden beams **(a/n: has anyone else ever wondered why there are wooden beams in a volcano?) **to swing down gracefully to the dirt. Raye landed next to him, wincing as Ambika's horns and claws shrunk away and then looked over at him.

"Well, now we can't go back the way we came." Jak said, looking over the crashed glider with a sigh. "Let's go check it out."

"Right behind you partner!" Jak and Raye looked up to see Daxter hanging from one of the beams over their heads. "Far behind ya'. Little help please?"

"Just drop, Daxter. We'll catch you!" Raye called, trying not to laugh. Daxter rolled his eyes and, after a few moments' hesitations, let go of the beam. Well, to be more precise, he just couldn't hold on any longer and he slipped.

His scream was cut short when he landed safely in Raye's arms. "See? Was that really so hard?" He just glared at her and hopped over to Jak's shoulder.

"Wow, it's a little hot in here." Raye muttered as she blasted away at a pack of Stinger's that had popped up in front of them.

"What do you expect?" Jak asked as he kicked away the half-exploded corpse of a Stinger he had just killed. "We're inside a volcano." Raye glared at him, climbing the stone stairs to see…

"Whoa." She whispered, looking at the rivers or lava flowing around the rock islands, teeming with trees, grass, and the like. Not to mention two other life forms that was undeniably not of the plant species.

"Hey, Leaper Lizards!" Daxter exclaimed, quite loudly in fact. This startled the lizards and caused them to run in the very opposite direction of the elves. Said elves both turned and fixed Daxter with a glare that very clearly read 'you idiot.' The Ottsel chuckled. "Oops?"

"Daxter…" Raye growled.

He shrunk down on Jak's shoulder. "Shouldn't we catch those Lizards?"

Raye glared at him. "You are so lucky that I don't kill you." She ran off after the Lizards, leaving Jak to follow.

Said elf looked up at the Ottsel, opening his mouth. Daxter held up a paw. "Don't say it. Not a word." Jak chuckled, walking after Raye. But his pace quickly turned into a run as he heard a startled yell from Raye.

Turning the corner, he saw that Raye, who had followed the Lizards over a VERY large gap, had been ambushed by a swarm of Mantis and Metal Jackets. "Raye!" Jak yelled, looking at the gap.

"There's no way we can jump that, Jak." Daxter told him.

"I know, but I have an idea, so let me concentrate." He growled, closing his eyes. Dark eco lightning crackled around his ankles, curling up around his legs to his waist. Backing up, the blonde elf took a running start, landing safely on the other side. The rock under his boots didn't have a chance to crumble before he had moved off of it, pulling out his Blaster and disposing of the Metal Jacket readying itself to shoot Raye with its weird, explosive a- er, tail end.

Once all the Metal Heads were disposed of, Raye smiled at Jak. "Thanks."

"No problem. Where'd the Lizards go?"

Raye pointed ahead of her. A gap that led over another lava river awaited them patiently, ready to send any creature stupid enough to attempt to pass over it to a painful, burning death. "But I don't think the rock's stable."

"You mean like that?" Jak pointed at the now larger gap behind him.

"Sorry. I was going to warn you, but I got kind of preoccupied."

Jak smirked. "Yeah, I saw." His demeanor grew serious. "You're going first. Don't argue, you're lighter than me and have less chance of breaking the ledge."

Raye rolled her eyes before turning to the possibly-deadly jump. She started toward it at a run, leaping off the edge of the ledge and over the molten river, rolling to the safety of the other side. The rock didn't fall, but it did shift warningly.

She looked over at Jak and smiled, giving him a thumbs up. "See? Easy."

Jak shook his head and sprinted toward the edge, jumping as the ledge crumbled underneath him and landing on the other side, jumping another three feet to stable ground as that ledge collapsed as well. Raye was standing as he made this second jump and dusting herself off. "So, now what?" She asked, looking at the healing scrapes on her bare back.

"There are the Leapers." Jak said, pointing to an oddly quiet looking clearing, where the creatures were indeed standing, munching on grass.

Raye turned to Daxter. "You," She hissed, holding her finger a centimeter away from his nose, "Keep your mouth shut. _Understand_?" Daxter nodded. "Good."

After a moment, both of the unwilling "steeds" had been caught. "Well, that wasn't so bad." Jak grinned at his sister, swinging his leg over the Leaper's saddle.

Raye rolled her eyes. "Yeah, but YOU didn't end up eating a mouthful of dirt when those damn Spiny Toads popped up and scared the Leapers." She replied in a huff, climbing on the Leaper whose reins she'd grabbed. Digging her heels lightly into the reptile's sides, it started forward.

Another minute of exploring, and the heroes found themselves in quite a predicament. "What now? There's nothing but lava." Raye sighed, scratching her Leaper just behind its eye, making it let out a happy trill.

Jak looked around, and then grinned. "This way." He urged his mount forward, toward a rising hill. Raye followed, somewhere between confused and curious. Until she started up the hill, and then saw…

"Land!" Daxter cried joyously, hugging Jak's head. Jak rolled his eyes and, after prying Daxter's arms from around his skull, attempted to make the Lizard leap the gap. Instead, the animal reared back, shrieking shrilly.

"What's wrong with them?" Raye growled, trying to get her own mount to settle down.

A rush of warm air blew over them, and a stream of lava shot up in the gap between the two rocky ledges. It subsided not even half a minute later. "Volcanoes IN the Volcano. Well, this day can't get any better." Raye chirped sarcastically.

Jak rolled his eyes. "Your sarcasm is not appreciated." He urged his Leaper forward again, and this time it did jump the gap.

There was a scraping of talons on stone as Raye's Leaper followed not long after. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me…" She groaned as she saw what lay ahead of them. More platforms.

"Um…" Daxter started, pointing at the three dark stone plateaus ahead of them. "Are they moving?"

"Yes. Unfortunately, Dax, yes." Jak said, partially disbelieving himself.

"Lava currents." Raye sighed. "It's like air, only-"

"Only it can melt our very bones if we so much as touch it?" Daxter asked, falsely cheery.

"Yeah, pretty much." She nudged her Leaper forward, looking over the edge cautiously. "No lava spewers…" She sighed, only somewhat relieved. Kicking her Leaper harder, it leapt over the first and second gaps, stopping at the last platform. Lava shot up at the front and back of the platform, shielding Raye from view.

"Raye!" Jak yelled.

"I'm alright! A little too warm for comfort, but alright." She called back. The lava shrank quickly, revealing Raye, who was suffering from nothing worse than a flushed face. The Leaper, quickly and without any urging, leapt to the large mass of solid land, as grateful to be on it as its rider. Jak followed after Raye, somehow managing to beat the lava spewage.

"Spiny Toads." Raye sighed, pointing ahead of them, where a pack of almost two-dozen sat, staring at them.

Jak grinned over at Raye mischievously. "Charge?"

"And I thought I was supposed to be the crazy one…" Raye sighed, not able to hide her own grin. "Charge!" She yelled, both twins spurring their Leaper Lizards forward. Instinct kicked in, and the Leapers lowered their heads, taking out about half of the little pink annoyances in one go.

"Ladder!" Daxter yelled before either of his psycho friends got the urge to do something stupid again. Jak and Raye looked over at it, then jumped off the large reptiles and climbed up it.

"C'mon." Jak said, motioning to the continuing path. Carefully, he tested the ledge before stepping onto it and jumping across. The ground he landed on quickly crumbled and he moved to stable ground before it sent him plunging.

Raye glared at him across the gap. "I really, REALLY, hate you right now." She growled, closing her eyes. Ambika's wings materialized and she leapt across, landing safely next to Jak.

"You know, it scares me how much you use those powers." Jak told her as they walked along. "How much control you have over them."

Raye laughed. "I don't have any control over Ambika. She just doesn't want to die by quick and painful lava incineration either." She walked past him, said wings exploding into a shower of purple sparks as she did. Jak winced as several of the sparks sunk into his skin before following her.

"We seem to have a problem." Raye concluded as Jak rounded the corner. "It's a dead end."

Daxter gulped. "Please don't say that."

Raye rolled her eyes. "Chicken. Now what?" She asked Jak.

Jak looked around, and eyed the two islands jutting out of the lava, and the tall rock that was positioned on the farthest one. "Think you could fly over?" He asked, pointing.

Raye shook her head. "Uh-uh. I got rid of those wings for a reason. My dark eco is seriously drained. Flying over here and then doing the wings alone, it took a lot of eco."

"What do we do now?" Daxter asked. "There's no way that even you two could jump THAT."

Jak looked back over the area again, studying the rock. "If we could just get that rock to fall, it should be long enough to make a bridge. We can jump to the first platform, at least."

"Only one problem, Jak." Raye said dryly. "How do we get to the rock?" Jak looked around for a path, and his gaze fell on the large tree in front of him. His eyes followed the trunk up, and onto the netting attached to the branches.

Daxter followed at Jak's gaze, sighed, and jumped off his shoulder. "Wait here, I'll be back." He climbed the tree quickly and grabbed onto the net.

"Be careful, Daxter!" Raye called as she peered around the tree and saw three mini volcanoes under the path of the net. Daxter gulped and began climbing forward.

When he was almost halfway across the net, the low rumbling started. Jak and Raye looked at each other nervously. "Dax, hurry!" Jak called, looking down at the volcanoes beneath the Ottsel.

"Easy for you to say." Daxter muttered, trying to speed up. His hand slipped from the rope he'd just grabbed, and Daxter let out a yelp, which was drowned out by the sound of three erupting volcanoes.

"Daxter!" The twins yelled as the orange body was obscured by boiling lava. After a moment, the molten rock died away, and both of them let out a sigh as Daxter came back into view, clinging to the net for dear life.

"Oh thank Mar…" Raye sighed, her hand over her heart. "Dax, you all right?"

"Define 'all right'!" Came the faint reply.

Jak leant up against the tree and Raye sat down beside a large pile of rocks as Daxter rounded a corner and was obscured by the jagged rocks, and it was silent for a few moments. "Remind me to apologize to him." Jak said finally, breaking the silence that had previously only been filled by the bubbling lava and occasional eruption.

"Duly noted." Raye muttered in reply, barely glancing in his direction.

A loud crack, followed by a louder crash, reached the elves' ears. "You can thank me later, Jak." A familiar, and loud, voice said. Jak and Raye looked up to see Daxter standing on a long rock that had fallen, forming a bridge over the platforms. "Oh, and I'll take that apology now, if you don't mind." A familiar, and loud, voice said. Jak and Raye looked up to see Daxter standing on a long rock that had fallen, forming a bridge over the platforms

"Will you settle for an ear scratch?" Raye asked with a laugh, standing.

Daxter sighed, pretending to be annoyed. "If it will save Jak's fragile ego…" He hopped up into Raye's arms, nearly purring as she scratched his ears. "Oh yeah. Much better than an apology." Raye rolled her eyes and hopped across the islets after her brother.

She caught up with him at a high ledge. Jak grinned with her and laced his fingers together to boost her up. She placed her foot in his hands and Jak practically tossed her up onto the ledge, where he heard her land in a scuffle. She peered over, glaring at him. "You did that on purpose." She accused as she pulled him up.

"Did what?" He teased, his expression dimming as he looked past her. "Great."

Raye looked over her shoulder to see a group of Mantis and two Metal Jackets heading towards them. She sighed and pulled her Blaster out. "Why can't they just hop into the lava and save us the trouble?"

"Because that would be too easy." Jak muttered, lifting the Blaster to shoulder level and pulling the trigger.

Once the Metal Heads were dealt with, Raye walked over to the eco they left behind. "Thank Mar, maybe now Ambika will stop her bi- what the hell?!" She gasped as it flew away, not toward her, or even Jak, but deeper into the volcano.

"Dark eco is weird, but I don't think it's supposed to fly." Daxter said as Jak walked up next to Raye.

"It's not." Jak answered warily. "At least, I don't think it's supposed to."

Raye shook her head, trying to clear out the confusion and annoying voice that was bothering her. "Let's… let's just keep going. Maybe we'll find out what the hell's going on."

Now curiosity, if nothing else, was propelling both elves forward. But soon, they found themselves at another end, this time with a puzzle not so hard to solve. "Steam vent…" Raye said, watching the heated water shoot out of the vent with force strong enough to push her back when she got too close.

Daxter tapped Jak's head and pointed at the slab of rock that looked like it would fit just perfectly into the vent opening. He smirked and pushed it over. It fell into the hole like a missing puzzle piece with a dull 'thump'. "Plus rock…"

Raye stepped back as a low rumble started, and the pressure of the steam shot the rock into the air. "Equals makeshift elevator! Are we good or what?" She laughed, hopping onto the rock as it fell back down. Jak stepped up next to her, looking down as the rumble began again. Both stumbled as the rock shot up with surprising speed and force, remaining suspended in the air from the force of the steam. Both jumped to the stable ledge in front of them. Testing the breakability of their bones after landing on (or falling off) the rock was not something that either wanted to experience.

--

SC: Okay, this has taken a really long time, but I've just cut this chapter down from going on ten pages, and still going, to five. And made a two part chapter. Sort of. Whatever, you guys know what I mean! R&R please!

Ja ne

SC


	18. Another Dark Satellite

SC: Okay, completely ignoring the lack of reviews from you guys to type this chapter… except from you, Hanne. I love you. Really, I do.

Disclaimer: I don't own Jak and Daxter. I own Raye. For now… (insert evil cackle)

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Chapter 18

The Dark Satellite

"I-" Gun shot. "Hate-" Scream of a dying Mantis. "Metal Heads!" Raye growled. Jak, who had decided that his sister had some SERIOUS issues to work out, was standing back and watching as Raye slaughtered the Mantis, Spiny Toads, and Metal Jackets that dared get in her firing range, which, with a Blaster in her hands, was pretty damn far.

"I almost feel sorry for the Metal Heads." Daxter whispered.

"Almost." Jak agreed, wincing slightly as a bullet to the brain made a Spiny Toad's head (and, therefore, fifty percent of its body) explode.

Raye let out a sigh as the wave of monsters ceased. "Feel any better?" Jak asked, walking over.

She nodded. "I managed to absorb a little of the eco, so Ambika's shut up (for the moment), but guess where the rest of it went." Jak pointed down the path. "Good guess."

Daxter groaned, slumping over. "Can we hurry this up? I'm getting dehydrated in my full body fur coat over here."

"Sorry Dax, but we're going as fast as we can." Jak apologized, wiping some sweat off of his own forehead. Mar, and he'd thought the Wasteland had been hot!

As if reading his mind, Raye groaned. "I think I'd rather be back out in the desert."

"If we can get back OUT to the desert." Daxter muttered.

"Great way to be a pessimist, Dax." Jak said moodily.

_'You know, I hate to say it, really, I do, but the talking rat has a point.'_ Lykaios muttered in the back of Jak's mind. _'Our only way out crashed when we came in, and I don't think Ambika has enough power to fly us out of here, let alone back to Spargus.'_

'You think I don't know that?' Jak hissed in reply, taking long strides to catch up with Raye. "Oh joy." He said as he rounded the corner. "More jumping."

"Tell me about it." Raye said dryly, already on the other side of the chasm. Jak shook his head, muttering something that sounded suspiciously like 'impatient' under his breath as he jumped the gap as well.

Another Metal Head ambush certainly didn't help the moods of anyone, and one certain orange furball's got significantly sourer as they faced a new obstacle…

"No way! Not a chance, nuh-uh!" Daxter protested, crossing his arms defiantly.

"Dax, come on. It's the only way through." Jak sighed, staring down at his best friend. "All you have to do is climb up the pipe and push the rock down. Easy."

"Yeah, easy for you two! I'LL be doing all the hard work while you two sit down here and relax!" Daxter protested. He looked over his shoulder at the pipe and groaned, walking toward it. "Do I have to do everything?" He muttered just loud enough for a normal elf to hear (which means that Jak and Raye heard it perfectly) as he climbed into the Ottsel size pipe.

Unfortunately, Daxter's accusations were far from the truth. 'Relaxing' was the last thing on the two elves minds. "Can you feel it too?" Jak asked quietly once he was sure Daxter was a sufficient distance away.

Raye nodded. "Yeah. It's kind of hard to ignore a pulse of dark eco that big. It has to be one of those satellites."

Jak nodded. "I know. I'm getting the same feeling from this one that I get from that dark eco crystal."

"I wonder…" Raye murmured. "Jak, can I see the crystal?"

The blonde dug through his pack for a moment before producing it. "Why, what are you going to do?"

Raye grinned at him, and Jak shuddered slightly. "I'm going to experiment."

--

Daxter quite nearly missed the bouncy tarp and would have plummeted to his death if not for his marvelously fast Ottsel reflexes when he heard the scream. And, unfortunately, he had a pretty good guess of who was doing the screaming. He hauled himself back up the wooden stake and jumped onto the tightly stretched tarp and pulled himself over the ledge to see the rock that his insane best-friends-slash-family-type-peoples wanted him to get down. His next plan of action was to somehow topple the rock and/or jump down there to see what the hell was making Raye scream.

Because, and Daxter knew this for a proved fact, it took a helluva lot to make Jak or Raye scream in pain like they were now.

But Daxter's brave, bravado-filled plans all went down the drain when something very fast and very big leapt up in front of him. At first, he thought it was a Metal Head. Then he peeked through his fingers long enough to see that it was something very, very close.

There was a grunt as Lykaios climbed up after Ambika. _"Thanks for the help."_ He muttered, glaring at her.

_"You're a big boy. I figured you could do it yourself."_ She retorted, offering him a hand up. He took it and let her pull him up.

"I thought Jak and Raye were out of eco." Daxter muttered, somewhat confused.

_"They were. Raye smashed the crystal._" Lykaios said with a smirk. _"Best boost I've ever had."_

Ambika pouted. Daxter found this somewhere incredibly weird and insanely funny. _"Yeah. You're welcome."_

--

"Um… shouldn't you guys have changed back by now?" Daxter asked as Lykaios and Ambika ripped through a swarm of Spiny Toad and Mantis.

_"No."_ Lykaios grinned at him evilly.

Ambika shook her head as she ripped the claw off of a Mantis and skewered a Toad with it. _"What Lykaios means is that we still have too high of a boost. Trying to change back now could just harm Jak or Raye."_

Daxter blinked. "Oh." He fell into silence, and decided that he was just going to hold on to Jak's shoulder armor for dear life until these two were done. Finally, the monsters were eliminated (or just wizened up and committed suicide by jumping off the cliff and into the lava themselves), and Lykaios and Ambika shrank away with a shudder.

"That was… a unique experience." Raye muttered.

Jak rubbed his neck. "Next time you get the urge to do something stupid like breaking a solid eco crystal, please tell me so I can shoot you." Raye stuck her tongue out at him as he turned away.

_'That was fun. You shouldn't let him talk to you like that.'_

Raye rolled her eyes as she followed 'him' up the path. 'Jak and Lykaios just don't get along as… swimmingly as you and I do.' Ambika just laughed.

Her laugh petered off as she saw what lay ahead. _'Oh…'_

"Fuck." Raye finished aloud.

Daxter groaned and buried his face in Jak's hair. "First there are volcanoes IN the volcano, then there's a lava river!"

Jak squinted across the heat haze. "Is… is that a ladder?"

Raye followed her brother's gaze across the river of burning, bone-scorchingly painful DOOM. "Yeah… yeah, I think it is."

"Oh no." Daxter muttered. "Please tell me we aren't jumping it."

"Of course not." Jak assured him. "We're using those." He pointed at the 'those' he was referring to.

Daxter stared at Jak's, ahem, "plan". "I'm going to kill you. Seriously, I really am."

"Right." Jak rolled his eyes and backed up. "Daxter, I have two words for you: 'hold' and 'on'." Daxter gulped and hunkered down on the cool, somewhat reassuring armor underneath him, his claws practically digging grooves into the indestructible Precursor metal.

Jak ran toward the deadly river and leapt… landing firmly on a chunk of solidified obsidian rock. He stumbled unsteadily for a moment, but then regained his balance. Flashing Raye a thumbs up over his shoulder, he jumped onto the ladder, grabbing it as if… well, as if his grip slipped, he would disintegrate into a Jak-shaped pile of ash, and have to forever listen to Daxter complaining about how he was the cause of the little rodent's death in the afterlife.

Raye copied him, though didn't stop to give anyone the reassuring 'I'm okay' thumbs up (mainly because she had no one to give it to) and just leapt from the rock to the ladder and scaled it as quickly as she could. Hauling herself over the edge, her eyes widened as she took in the sight of a freaking HUGE Dark Satellite.

"Holy shit." She breathed, her eyes locked on the mountain of black metal in front of her.

"It isn't alive, is it?" Daxter asked, peering out from behind Jak's shoulder.

Jak edged toward it cautiously, letting a sigh out when it didn't impale him on one of its serrated, whip-like tentacles. "No, I don't think so."

Raye touched one of the arms that had dug into the nearby rocky ground, pulling away as the cold seeped through her gloves. "This thing must have been here for ages before Seem and her monks started comi- ooohh no…" She cut off with a groan as her eyes fell on a crouching figure near the head of the metal beast.

Daxter grimaced as he jumped off of Jak's shoulder. "Looks like it didn't agree with him…" He walked around the corpse. "Hey, what's this?"

"Don't touch it, Daxter!" Jak ordered, holding out a hand to stop him. "Who knows what more dark eco would do to you…"

Daxter turned around, giving his friend a look that clearly said, 'you're joking, right?' "Look at me, Jak. I'm short, I'm hairy, and I itch in strange places. I couldn't do worse."

"You could be dead." Raye told him.

He opened his mouth to reply, but stopped as he realized that this was true. "Relax, Raye. I know what I'm doing." He walked over to the corpse and touched the fingers, recoiling quickly. "Ooohh yuck… cold, clammy dead hands…" He shuddered as he grabbed the fingers and tugged. "Oh I can't look…" He made little noises of disgust as he tugged until, finally, the dry, brittle fingers snapped, sending Daxter and the relic held in them flying, with the idol preparing to come smashing down on Daxter's body.

"Look out Dax!" Jak yelled, diving over his friend and snatching the idol out of the air, cradling it close to his body as he tucked into a roll.

"Bravo." Raye said, clapping, but there was a relieved undertone in her words. Jak grinned at her as he stood up, still cradling the relic carefully as he turned around.

Daxter's eyes widened as the crystal in the statue's center began to pulse and glow. "Um… Jak?"

"Wha-" Jak started, looking down at the statue, just as a wave of purple lighting rolled off of the crystal, absorbing straight into his chest. Daxter fell to the ground, covering his head with his paws as the wave passed above him, smacking into Raye.

The eco tingled as it passed through the two Channelers' chests, sparks playing over every inch of skin. As they faded, they took the two elves with them. Daxter peeked out from under his hands looking around for his disappearing friends. "Jak? Raye? Where are you guys? HEY!"

Daxter whipped around as Jak dropped the statue and it shattered against the rock ground, and both he and Raye shimmered back into visibility. "It's a dark power Dax. Some kind of invisibility."

"Well I don't care what it is, cut it out." Daxter ordered, crossing his arms. If you moved that fast a long time ago, I'd still be wearing pants." He began to walk off, but then stopped and turned around. "You know what I really miss? Soft underpants. You know how it lifts and cradles…" He stopped as both Jak and Raye started to snicker. "Hmph. You wouldn't understand. We're outta here!" Daxter began

Jak and Raye looked at each other and shook their head, following after Daxter.

_"Neeeegggiiiiiidddaaaaaaggggggg_ 1_…"_

Jak and Raye froze and slowly turned back toward the satellite. "Jak, please tell me you heard that…" Raye whispered.

"I'm not sure I want to…" He whispered back.

_'Why is it calling us 'masters'?'_ Ambika questioned.

"It's calling us what?" Raye asked, startled into speaking out loud.

"Who's calling who what?" Daxter asked, turning around to see that both of them had stopped. "I didn't hear anything."

"The satellite." Raye said. "Jak, that thing just called us 'masters'."

Jak stared at her. "What?"

The satellite jerked suddenly, and the end opened to reveal a pulsing violet crystal held within three pronged claws. _"Iezd ifd yapgiek xeyz ic ifd ncifda gfhs. Qhod hi iv ycnneurda Errol… idkk fhn ihdad jdad uc cifdag…_2_"_ The grating voice died away as the machine shuddered before falling still and not moving.

"Is it… dead?" Daxter gulped.

"I think so." Jak said, inching forward. The satellite didn't so much as twitch. Carefully, he reached out and pulled the crystal from the prongs, tucking it in his pouch before making his way back over to the waiting Raye and Daxter. "Did you understand any of that?"

Raye shook her head. "Ambika didn't get any of it. I don't know how she understood that first word." She paled suddenly. "Jak… that thing said 'Errol'."

Jak froze. _Qhod hi iv ycnneurda Errol…_3 "So Errol is alive. That must be who we saw in that hologram!"

"Huh. I guess you weren't being paranoid." Daxter murmured.

"There's nothing we can do about it right now." Raye said finally. "Let's just get out of this volcano."

"Do you have enough eco to fly us out?" Jak questioned.

"Maybe. But I think I saw one of those eye things earlier. If it's anything like the one in the temple, then its guarding something."

Daxter climbed up to Jak's shoulder. "And you didn't mention this before because…?"

Raye glared at him. "Because last time one of those things saw me, I nearly got my leg skewered."

"Oh."

Jak shook his head and walked over to the ledge where the ladder was attached. Peering both ways, his eyes were greeted with a waterfall of molten rock flowing down toward them, and another falling over the edge of a cliff. But there was a small patch of protruding rock just out of the lava's reach. "Raye, come here." He motioned her over.

"What is it?"

Jak pointed at the tiny outcropping. "See that rock there? Just past the lava?"

"Yeah…" Raye replied, eyeing her brother warily. Nothing good ever happened when Jak had that tone.

"Do you have enough energy to fly over and see if it's big enough for me to stand on?"

_"I suppose."_ Ambika grumbled, taking off from the ledge and flying around the corner. She returned a moment later and landed next to him. _"There's an entire path over there, and it's strong enough to support several clusters of Metal Heads, so I'd say it's safe for you."_

"Great, thanks. Go wait for me."

She huffed. _"Sure, whatever you say, _Commander_."_ Sarcasm dripped from the words as she flew off, back around the corner. Jak heard the telltale sounds of a Metal Head getting ripped apart by razor sharp claws.

Faintly, by his ear, Jak could hear Daxter whimpering: "Oh god, please don't let me die…" This escalated into a scream of terror that continued long after Jak had landed on the slab of hardened lava and leapt to the ledge where Raye had changed back and had taken to shooting the Mantis that were leaping up toward her.

She glanced over at the screaming Daxter. "Shouldn't you tell him that it's safe to stop?"

At the word 'stop,' Dax peeked out from between his fingers to see that the owner of the shoulder he occupied was no longer flying through the air toward bone scorching lava, but safely standing on solid ground.

And laughing at him.

"Oh shut up." He growled, straightening up. "You'd be scared too, if you were only three feet tall." Jak and Raye laughed as they continued down the path.

"Why is it," Jak grunted as he hit the side of the narrow passage that he and Raye were walking down, "That whenever we find something useful, it's in a very hard to get to and dangerous place, and the only way out is some uncomfortably narrow passage?"

"Because karma hates us for some reason." Raye called from ahead of him. Then, after a few more minutes of stumbling and bumping into rock walls, Jak heard, "Freedom!"

He gratefully walked out of the crevice to see that it had led them back to the beginning of the cave. And that Raye was right, there WAS a watcher eye like back in Monk Temple. There was also a floor lined with holes under the eye, and it was standing right between them and a glowing Warp Portal. Jak took a step toward the eye, and spikes shot out of the ground. Step back, the spikes receded.

Raye tugged on Jak's sleeve. "Jak, look at that idol." Raye pointed at a crevice in the wall where a idol with glowing violet eyes.

"It's the same as the one I broke." He muttered, walking over to it. Reaching out to touch it, a this strand of lightning flew out to his flat palm.

"Jak!" Raye yelped in surprise as Jak faded from view. She jumped again as something pinched her nose. She swatted blindly in front of her. "Okay, which one of you did that?"

"Daxter."

"Traitor." Raye smirked and walked over to the statue, copying Jak. She shivered a little as the lighting crackled over her body, making her atoms disappear from sight.

"Woah, I can see you." Raye said, staring at the space Jak was in.

"Yeah, same here." Jak said, staring at her… or an outline of here. The spot in front of the statue seemed to glow violet in a Raye-shaped form.

Slowly, both of them edged toward the eye and, when it didn't seem to notice either, they sprinted across the row of spikes and dove through the Warp Portal.

--

SC: And that's it. Translations and pronunciation guide below. R and R please.

Ja ne

SC

**Translations**

1 _Neeeegggiiiiiidddaaaaaaggggggg_; This is actually the word 'negidag,' which means 'masters' as Ambika so helpfully translated. Basically, it was just drawn out into a hiss.

2_ Iezd ifd yapgiek xeyz ic ifd ncifda gfhs. Qhod hi iv ycnneurda Errol… idkk fhn ihdad jdad uc cifdag…_; This is quite the translation. It says: Take the crystal back to the mother ship. Give it to commander Errol… tell him there were no others…

3 _Qhod hi iv ycnneurda Errol…_; This is translated above, but just in case you didn't get it, it says: Give it to commander Errol.

**Pronunciation**

1 Neigh-ge(long 'e' sound, like in see)-dah-g

2 I(as in I am)-eased ift(like lift) yahp-ge(long 'e' again)-eck ex-eez ick nih-kif-da gif-hiss. Kwa-od he iv ee-can-neigh-oo-er-da Errol… ihd(like 'ah' only with an 'I' sound) –ick fin ihd-ad jad-ad ook sif-dag…

3 Kwa-od he iv ee-can-neigh-oo-er-da Errol…


	19. More Goober Eyed Precursor thingies

SC: Okay, so, this is getting the least amount of reviews of ANY of my stories, and that includes my Nightmare Before Christmas ones, which is a WAY smaller fandom than Jak and Daxter, but I'm going to keep typing it. Why? Because I'm starting to have fun with it again, so HA and NICE TRY to anyone who thought my lack of reviews would stop my stories. Here is the next chapter of Unwanted Demons, Unthought of Angels. Please enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Jak, Daxter, or any other character that was created by Naughty Dog. I do however give myself credit for naming Lykaios, Ambika, and Jak and Raye's light forms when they come up. So there.

--

Chapter

More Goober Eyed Precursor Thingies

"Holy shit that actually worked." Raye gasped as she looked around. The portal in the volcano had actually led back to Monk Temple.

"Why wouldn't it?" Jak asked, giving his younger sister a skeptical look.

Raye shrugged. "I dunno, I just kind of expected getting out of there to be… harder, I guess." Her eyes scanned Jak's body and she cursed. "We're visible again!"

"Please explain how this is a bad thing." Daxter said, confused, as he looked over at her. Raye pointed at the giant eye that hovered over the doorway that led deeper into the temple. "Oh. Right." The Ottsel paused. "Well… maybe we could look for one of those statue things."

"Dax, those statues were dark. Why the hell would there be one in a-"

"Found one!" Raye called from the other side of the room, waving Jak over. "This is convenient." She said, holding her hand out and disappearing from sight. Jak could hear her footsteps moving away from him and toward the door, and soon the stone doors were pushed open by her invisible hands. Jak blinked as the eye shuddered and disappeared in a flash of light.

"Huh. That was odd." Daxter commented as Jak walked over to join Raye.

Jak slipped through the opening in the doors and followed Raye's gaze. Ahead of them lay a set of staircases, and beyond that another, and he had a feeling that there was a third or fourth as well. "Why is it that every place we go, the architects found it necessary to build these long, annoying hallways?" Jak sighed as he began to walk down the steps.

A strange scuttling noise brought him to a halt. "Raye, did you hear-" A gunshot from behind him made Jak turn, startled. Raye was pointing her Blaster down the stairs, her aim shaking slightly. Jak followed the laser targeting to see it resting on a dead Spider.

"I don't like Spiders" Raye muttered.

Jak looked past Raye, reaching back and pulling his Morph Gun out of its holster. "Then I have a feeling," He started, switching over to Scatter Gun mode, "That you really aren't going to like this."

Raye turned slowly to see a swarm of the blasted little buggers skittering their way up the stairs. Her face was oddly blank, and then she turned to Jak, who nearly laughed at the burning resentment in her eyes.

"Jak…"

"Yes, Raye?" He asked innocently.

The sound of mechanisms locking echoed down the hall above the skittering of the eight-legged creatures as Raye switched her Blaster into its Scatter Gun form. "I _really_ hate you."

--

"Here let me see." Jak said as they cleared the hallway of the last of the pests. Raye turned slightly to let him see the two puncture holes in her shoulder where a Spider had leapt on her and managed to take a bite before being kicked away by Daxter.

"Jak, it's fine, really. The eco's already working it out of my system." Raye said, though she winced in pain as Jak touched the bite.

"The area's still tender… can you walk yet?"

Raye attempted to pull herself off the floor using the wall, but fell back as her legs proved to be quite unresponsive. "Apparently not."

Jak chuckled and pulled her up, looping one of her arms around his shoulders and wrapping his around her waist. "Don't laugh at me." Raye whined, attempting to lift her legs to help Jak. It didn't work.

"Relax, Raye. You can pay me back later." He paused and grinned down at her teasingly. "Never pegged you as being allergic to Spider venom though…"

She glared up at her older twin. "I have one word for you, bucko: wumpbees."

"I should drop you for that."

"Laugh at me again and I unleash a bottle in your underwear drawer." Raye threatened.

Jak's eyes narrowed as he stopped walking. "You wouldn't dare."

"You're right, I wouldn't. I love you too much." Raye smiled as she craned her head up to peck his cheek. Jak just shook his head and continued to pull her down the stairs, until they reached another door at the bottom.

As is slid open, three pairs of eyes bugged out at the sight of what lay behind it. "No way…" Daxter whispered.

"What is that?" Raye questioned, looking up at Jak.

His cerulean eyes narrowed. "An eco well. We used to have them everywhere in Sandover. But never…"

"Never dark, right?" Raye said, looking up at him.

Jak nodded. "Never dark eco." He carried Raye over to the well, examining it carefully. "It must be connected straight to the catacombs for the flow to be so strong."

Raye took a shuddering breath as thin branches of the steam-like stream of eco curled around her body. "Oh, Mar… it's… it's so cold…" Jak felt her weight lift from his shoulders as she stood on her own, the eco flushing the last of the venom from her body.

"That's because it's pure eco, not the stuff that the Metal Heads are infected with." Jak told her, staying far enough away from the stream to not absorb any. Raye, however, reached her hand out toward it, letting out a gasp as she immersed it in the stream completely. "Raye, no!" Jak cried, pulling her back. She came, but slowly, like she was being pulled though molasses.

The girl shivered, shudders wracking her thin frame as she lay against Jak's chest, gasping. Her eyes were blacker than ink as she stared at the wall in front of her. "That… that was such a rush…" She said through labored breaths. Closing her eyes, she leant her head on her brother's shoulder. After several moments, her breathing calmed and the shuddering ceased. Raye opened her eyes and Jak saw the blackness dispersing, twisting back into her pupils like twin whirlpools.

"Let's not do that again, alright?" Jak said as he held Raye on her feet, not sure she was completely steady.

Raye nodded, pushing his hands away. "Yeah… yeah, okay. No more diving into the eco well."

Daxter scoffed. "'Diving?' You barely put your hand in it. I would hate to see what happened if you actually stood in that thing, much less dived into it."

Raye chuckled. "Those things should come with warning labels: 'Bathe at your own risk. Make sure all your vaccinations are up to date before taking the plunge'."

Jak couldn't help it; he let out a small laugh. "We take no responsibility for any mutations that may occur. Thank you and have a wonderful day!" All three burst out laughing, even though it really wasn't that funny.

None of them wanted to admit that they were scared to death of a stream of the dark stuff leaking into the surface. And if there was one eco well, there had to be more…

_'What's a dark eco well even doing in this place?'_ Lykaios mused, making Jak pause for a second before shaking the question out of his mind. And just in time too, because he did not like what he saw when he walked through the other door.

"Fuck." Jak muttered as he saw the interior of the next room.

Daxter looked from Jak to Raye, who shared identical looks of malice. "What? What is it?"

Both of them raised a hand and pointed at the center of the room. Ten small metal objects that looked like floating cameras sat in a perfect circle around a raised platform with what appeared to be a button on top. "Big deal, so the monks have security cameras." Dax shrugged. "What are they gonna do to you two? Chant you to death?" The Ottsel laughed at his own joke, but stopped as he realized that neither of his two companions were laughing.

"Those AREN'T cameras, Daxter." Raye said quietly. "They're sentry bots. KG issue."

Daxter blinked at her. "Wha…? What the hell are MONKS doing with KRIMZON GUARD SENTRY BOTS?!"

"I don't know, Dax." Jak growled. "But I'm going to find out."

Raye scanned the room, her eyes eventually falling on a door identical to the one they entered from on the other side of the room. "There's our way out. I think if we stick to the edge of the room, the sentries shouldn't notice us, and we won't get zapped."

Daxter gulped. "Eh… zapped?"

Jak began to make his way around the room, sticking close enough to the wall for his arm to be touching it. "Sentry bots have a very specific visual range. If you walk into that range and aren't recognized by the bot, you get zapped with enough volts to take down the Metal Head leader in ten seconds. Same thing happens if you shoot one. The others will calculate where the bullet came from and-"

"Fry your ass good." Raye interrupted from behind Jak.

"Yeah, pretty much."

Daxter was silent for a moment. "How do you two know so much about these things?"

Jak contemplated whether or not to answer Daxter's question when the stone brushing his skin turned to cool metal. He halted and looked over at the wall next to him, his eyes widening.

Raye bumped into his shoulder. "Jak, have I ever told you to warn me before you stop walking RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME?"

He ignored her. "Raye… look at this door…"

She gave him an odd look, and then turned her gaze to said door. There was a sharp intake of breath. "This is…" Raye breathed.

"One of Mar's doors." Jak finished.

Raye ran her hands along the thin line between the two halves of the yin-yang symbol. "I wish we had our seals…" She whispered sadly, her hands dropping to her sides. Jak put a hand on her shoulder and pulled her away, leading her toward their way out.

"It isn't opening." Daxter griped as Jak and Raye examined the stone.

Jak crossed his arms, closing his eyes in thought. "The other doors opened when we got close to them… so why not this one?"

Daxter tugged on a lock of Jak's blonde-green hair. "Maybe that has something to do with it?" He suggested, pointing at the switch he'd noticed earlier.

Raye blinked several times. "Well… damn it, we're screwed."

"Maybe the sentries have an off switch or something." Jak suggested, sounding like he barely believed it himself. "Let's look for one." Raye rolled her eyes and walked off in the direction they came from, muttering something that sounded like how pointless this was.

_'This is stupid. Why don't we just dark blast the damn robots and get it over with?'_

Raye sighed, running her hands over the smooth stone wall. 'Because, if we didn't get all of them in one hit, we'd get killed. Besides, we wouldn't be able to get in range.'

_'I could fly over them.'_

Raye paused to consider this, then turned and looked at the pillars supporting the room. 'No chance. Your wingspan is too big to fit between these things. There has to be another way to remotely trigger the door. We'll just keep looking until we find it.'

_'Or until we're dead.'_ Ambika muttered.

On the other side of the room, Jak wasn't having much more luck. He pounded his fist against the wall in frustration. "This isn't doing us any good!"

Lykaios, however, was intrigued. _'Hit that wall again.'_

Jak frowned, confused. 'What? Why?'

_'Just do it, and listen this time instead of whining.'_ Jak rolled his eyes but slammed his fist against the stone again. This time, a hollow echo sounded back to him. His eyes widened in shock.

'It's a fake wall!'

Lykaios scoffed. _'Brilliant genius.'_

'Shut up.' Jak growled, turning around to see Raye slumping against the wall in front of her. "Raye!"

Her head snapped up. "What? Did you realize how pointless this is too?"

Jak shook his head. "No, just come here!" He heard her sigh as she pushed herself off of her resting place and trudged over.

"What?" Jak rapped the wall, letting Raye hear the hollow bouncing of an echo.

Raye smirked. "Hm, interesting. What in the world would a bunch of Monks have to hide?"

"Why don't we find out?" Jak tempted, the mark on his forearm glowing brightly. Raye tugged the glove off of her hand and placed it against the brick, Jak doing the same next to her. Purple lightning shot through the stone, sending both sprawling backwards.

"Shit… my head…" Raye muttered, propping herself onto her elbows, only to have her head hit something cool and metallic. Ever so slowly, Raye looked up to see that she was laying almost directly beneath one of the sentry bots.

But she wasn't dead yet.

Odd.

She looked down at her body, then realized why. Her physical form was missing, only a shining violet aura to tell her that she was indeed still there. "Hey, Jak!" She called, standing carefully and backing up out of 'zapping' range, making sure not to disturb the robot. "Lookit, we're invisible again!"

"Yeah, I can tell." Jak called, his voice coming from behind one of the pillars. A Jak-shaped aura stepped out toward her. "I just got slammed into one of the pillars. You?"

"I got to get up close and personal with one of the sentry bots." Raye replied, so totally pwning his ass on the 'I landed in a worse spot than you' contest. But back on subject now…

"Stay here." Jak ordered, walking past the line of robots. "I don't think both of us need to push this stupid switch down." Raye sighed and leant up against the wall dejectedly. Why did men always seem to find it necessary to put themselves in danger when girls could handle it just as well? Well, Jak DID suffer from OPOBS, a.k.a Over-Protective Older Brother Syndrome.

A slight 'click' reached Raye's ears and she looked up to see the doors open. Woohoo, right? Her gaze then fell on Jak… who was now visible. Shit.

"Jak!" She called, stopping him from moving forward and ultimately getting killed. Jak stopped and looked back at Raye, his eyes widening as he _saw_ her and not just a Raye-shaped glow.

Daxter groaned. "Well NOW what do we do?"

"The Wave Concussor." Raye said, her eyes gleaming with an idea. "Use the Concussor, and it should take all the bots out at once!"

Jak grinned at his sister and pulled his Morph Gun out, still in Scatter Gun mode. He switched it to the second red gun form, shifting slightly as the gun gained the extra weight. Pulling the trigger back, he watched the glow at the gun's barrel until it stopped growing, and the gun began to shake under his hands. Releasing his hold on the trigger, the gun shot out a circular wave that quickly reduced the sentry bots into little more than charred metal and melted plastic wiring.

"Nice." Raye complemented, walking out to meet him. "Can we go now?"

Jak rolled his eyes, still grinning so his mock-annoyance was all but ruined, as he walked toward the door he'd just opened. "Oh great." He groaned, switching back to Scatter Gun. "More Spiders."

"I hate this place." Raye muttered behind him.

Once the mutant arachnids had been taken care of (again!), the two elves headed into the next room, stopping as they saw the floating eyes that had all suddenly focused on them. "Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" Jak asked as he took a step forward.

The reaction was immediate. Gates shot up along the pathways, blocking the clear cut way through the room. "That's why." Raye growled, walking to the only pathway not gated off. Another growl issued from deep in her throat when she saw the deep pit in the floor in front of her. "Oh freaking joy."

"I guess we use those to get across." Jak told her, pointing at the moving bars ahead of him. He took a step toward them, and the eye's pupil widened, making electricity fly over the bars. Jak moved away, and the electricity stopped.

"Correction. YOU use those to get across." Raye said from behind him. _"I get across my way."_ A gust of wind signified Ambika's takeoff and Jak turned around, somehow only mildly surprised to see another Dark Idol sitting on the ridge behind him.

This 'Temple' just kept getting weirder and weirder.

--

"Have fun?" Raye asked as Jak landed in front of her, invisibility wearing off.

"Loads." He replied dryly, walking toward the exit. He was surprised to see the dead Spider bodies lying within.

"Dark eco apparently does some fascinating things to insects' cardiovascular systems." Raye informed him as she walked by. Jak closed his eyes and shook his head, starting after her. He stopped and turned to see the gates lowering themselves. Well, that was certainly annoying. It was like this entire place was just mocking him.

"Jak, are you coming?" Raye called, already halfway down the hall, hands on her hips impatiently.

"C'mon, let's go." Daxter said, tugging on Jak's ear. The elf nodded and jogged down the hall to catch up with Raye.

The stone door slid open easily as they approached it, revealing a seemingly empty room, save for a few pots. "That's odd." Raye muttered.

"What is?" Jak asked absentmindedly.

"Well, it's nothing, really, but this room looks almost exactly like the room that we found that dark eco vent in."

Jak looked around. It _did_ resemble the other room quite closely. "Well, there isn't one. Maybe they just had a really bad interior decorator." Daxter said jokingly. Jak chuckled, stopping when his foot came down on something metal. Stepping back, he knelt down next to it.

"What is that?" Raye questioned, leaning down next to his shoulder.

Jak's fingers brushed over the metal, and he shivered as a warm sensation traveled up his arm. He'd felt it before, somewhere… he just couldn't remember where. "It's a sealed eco vent. But I don't think it's for dark eco."

"Let's just leave it and get out of here." Daxter complained. "I seriously need a nap." Jak stood, silently agreeing with Daxter. Sleep sounded really good about now. But not yet.

Walking through the next door, Jak and Raye let out identical gasps of amazement. In front of them was a Precursor statue, larger than any they'd ever seen, five times the size of the Oracle in Haven city, at least. But they had not time to marvel as voices drifted over to them. Jak grabbed Raye's arm and pulled her behind the pillar near them, peering around it cautiously.

On another platform of the room, Seem stood facing the one and only Veger. Growls rose from both the Channelers' throats at the sight of him, only stopping as his voice rose.

"I want no excuses! You told me this could be done, now make it so!" He snapped at Seem, who seemed to cower away from him slightly.

"But we have so little time. The Day Star approaches, you know what it brings!" She said, her usually emotionless voice taking on a hint of fear.

Veger turned away from her, his tone soft and comforting, but Jak and Raye could hear the sinister undertones in his words. "Unfortunate, yes. We will deal with that as soon as I have full access to the catacombs. Just continue your work and I'll deal with those idiots in Haven. I promise you, you will meet your makers!" He walked out of the room swiftly, his coattails flying behind him. Seem stood there for a moment before exiting as well, her head bowed.

Jak and Raye stepped out from behind the pillar, shocked and confused by what they'd just witnessed. "Why are the catacombs so important?" Jak muttered.

"Those were the things under the Palace, right?" Raye asked. Jak nodded. "I don't have the slightest idea, but what's Veger even doing here? Shouldn't he be in Haven?"

Jak paused for a moment. "Raye… what do you think he meant, 'I'll deal with those idiots in Haven.'?"

Raye closed her eyes, turning away. "You know what? Why do we even care, it isn't our problem any more."

Jak blinked, shocked. Raye had always defended Haven until now. Jak put a hand on her shoulder comfortingly, but was interrupted by Daxter. "Hey, it's one of those goober eyed Precursor thingies!" He exclaimed with all his usual tactlessness.

**"Stand before me, great warriors."** The statue rumbled in the same metallic voice as the Oracle had. Jak and Raye barely glanced at each other before stepping onto the platform in front of the statue. **"Your returns bring us great hope."**

"Great hope? Why?" Jak questioned.

**"This planet's future is at a critical juncture. The Dark Ones have found your world again, and fate hands in the balance where the past and the future collide."**

Daxter jumped down to the ground, looking up at Jak and Raye. "Do you guys have any idea what he just said? Speak-a-da-normal-language, okay?" He called up to the statue.

Raye smacked the back of his head. "Be quiet, Daxter!"

The Oracle, who didn't seem to be perturbed by Daxter's interruption, continued. **"You will need all the power you can muster to survive this terrible test, great ones."**

Daxter 'hmph'ed proudly and crossed his arms. "I can handle it."

**"I was talking to the tall ones… shorty!"** Jak and Raye barely choked back their surprised laughter. This was the first time they'd ever heard the Oracle insult anyone.

"Hey!" Daxter protested, but was ignored.

**"Look into the light and receive a power, heroes."** Beams of light shot down from seemingly nowhere and hit Jak and Raye. The two of them floated into the air, their heads tilted back serenely, for a few seconds before collapsing to the floor.

"Jak! Raye!" Daxter yelped, running over to them.

--

_Raye's eyes fluttered open. "Where am I?" She questioned, sitting up. She quickly realized where she was as she saw the never ending blackness surrounding her. "Ambika? Raye called, quickly standing up. "Ambika, what's going on?"_

_There was a low growl from behind her, and Raye whipped around and was nearly blinded. There was a bright white light breaking the darkness, and Ambika was backed into a corner, crouched and growling like a cornered animal. _"Light eco…" _She hissed._

_Raye took a step toward the light, letting out a cry of shock as it flared for a moment. Peering between her fingers, she gasped as she saw what stood before her as it dimmed._

_It looked just like her, only… the figure's skin glowed with an ethereal blue-white light from everywhere. Pure, glowing white eyes focused on Raye, and the figure smiled. _**"Hello."** _She greeted. Raye was taken aback by her voice; it sounded like crystals chiming and was beautiful._

_"Who… what are you?" She finally managed to ask._

_The figure only smiled again._ **"I am the embodiment of the light within you, Raye."**

_Ambika scoffed. _"It's that goddamned Oracle's fault. It zapped you with light eco!"

_"Light eco…?" Raye murmured. She looked up to see the figure, her light side she now realized, standing in front of her. She held her hand out to Raye, still smiling softly. _

**"I am Angeni."** _Raye took her hand without thinking, and she gasped. It wasn't painful, like when she'd made the pact with Ambika, it was… soothing, warm. The world around her whited out._

--

Raye let out a slight moan as she sat up, putting a hand to her head. Next to her, Jak was stirring as well. He looked over at her as he sat up. "You too?" He asked, a real smile on his face for the first time in a long time.

She nodded. "Yeah."

Daxter let out a sigh of relief. "Don't do that again! You scared the crap out of me!"

"Sorry Daxter." Jak laughed softly.

Daxter froze. "Did you just say…?"

Raye laughed. "It's okay, Daxter. The dark eco… it's far away now."

The Ottsel frowned. "I'm confused."

Jak smiled at him. "The Oracle gave us light eco, Dax. Look." He held his right arm out to Daxter, revealing the light blue mark there. Raye pulled off her left glove to see that it adorned her palm as well.

"This is the same mark as before…" She gasped. "The one that I told you about."

"From the beach?" She nodded. Jak examined the mark on his arm again before simply shrugging. "Let's get some rest and talk about it in the morning."

"Finally!" Daxter cried as the two elves made their way toward the Warp Portal at the side of the room. "Let's get out of this place."

--

SC: Wow, I just wrote, like, a little over seven pages in one day. I CAN DO IT! YEA! Okay, anyway, review please!

Ja ne

SC


	20. Refusal to fight

Disclaimer: I don't own Jak, Daxter, or any other character that was created by Naughty Dog.

--

Chapter 20

In Trouble

"Welcome back!" Lyla greeted as Jak and Raye walked into the house. "Kleiver told me you went out to Monk Temple."

"Yeah. It was… enlightening." Raye told her finally.

Lyla smiled knowingly, her back turned to them. "Nice to know. I was just finishing making dinner if you three are hungry."

Three almost unanimous growls answered for them. Jak laughed. "I don't remember the last time we actually ate something."

Raye paused to think. "I… wow, actually, I don't either. I know it's been a while, though."

"Let's eat!" Daxter cried, hopping down off Jak's shoulder and running toward the kitchen.

--

Later that night, Jak walked into Raye's room. "Hey." She greeted, sitting up on her bed. "Where's Dax?"

"Still stuffing his face." Jak told her with a laugh, sitting down next to her. "It's disgusting to watch. I don't know how a body that small can hold so much food."

"Maybe he has extra stomachs, like a Yakow." Raye suggested. "I don't know what was wrong with me, though. I could barely eat anything."

Jak frowned. "Me too. It was like my body didn't need any food, even though I haven't eaten forever."

Raye looked over at him. "Do you think that the eco's done something to us?" Jak gave her a look that clearly said 'no duh'. "I meant other than the obvious, smart ass. Like, it's changed our bodies' systems somehow?"

"I hadn't even thought of that…" Jak murmured. "I don't know what to tell you, Raye. I'm not an expert on the effects of overexposure to eco."

"Yeah, Samos is, and he's all the way back in Haven City." Raye muttered, flopping down on her bed.

Jak looked away from her. "Get some sleep, Raye." He said finally as he stood and walked out. He stopped as Lyla walked into the room.

"I need to speak with the two of you. It's important."

Raye sat back up as Jak stepped back to allow Lyla entrance. "What is it?"

Lyla shut the door quietly before turning back to them. "The Oracle has touched the two of you with light eco, correct?"

Jak nodded. "How did you- oh, right." He stopped as Lyla's eyes glowed with white light.

**"The two of you must be more careful now than ever."** She told them, her voice taking a dual effect. **"Your powers will continue to grow, even after this, and the evil ones will try to contaminate you to further their cause."**

"Wait a minute; contaminate us?" Raye questioned. "Does this have something to do with that dark satellite that we found in the volcano calling us 'masters'?"

Lyla gasped. **"You understand the language of the dark ones?"**

"No, Ambika did, but only that one word." Raye told her, eyes narrowing suspiciously.

"It mentioned Errol." Jak interrupted.

Lyla closed her eyes, turning away. **"I feared this. The Dark Makers have chosen their leader."**

"Whoa, slow down for a second." Jak ordered. "What are 'Dark Makers'?"

**"Dark Makers are- used to be- Precursors. They have been tainted by dark eco, and have gone mad. They destroy planets that the Precursors have touched. Heroes are chosen to stop them. Many have failed."**

"Heroes?" Raye said. "You mean us? No way, let the world save itself this time."

**"Raye, facades do not fool gods."** Lyla scolded. **"You will not admit how you really feel in order to save Jak's feelings, but you secretly still yearn to be the hero you both once were."**

"Raye?" Jak questioned, his eyes narrowed. She wouldn't meet his gaze.

**"I would not be so quick to judge if I were you, Jak."** Lyla said, giving him a knowing gaze. **"The two of you are this world's last hope. The entire planet depends on your choices from here on out."**

"That's not giving us a choice at all!" Jak growled. "Either we save the world, or everything is destroyed, is that it?"

Lyla bent her head. **"I am afraid so."**

Jak glared at her. "Tell the Precursors to find new heroes. We quit."

**"I understand." **Lyla told him. **"But I have one more warning before I go: the Dark Ones will never give up their fight for your servitude. The ones that you love will be put in extreme danger if you try to avoid this conflict."** Blue sparks exploded out of Lyla's body and she fell forward with a low moan. Jak caught her easily.

"Whoa! What happened to her?" Daxter asked, walking through the door.

"Nothing, Dax. She just wasn't feeling good." Jak muttered, walking out. Raye stood and shut her door before collapsing onto her bed and falling asleep.

--

'You'd think that after living out here for almost a month I'd have gotten accustomed to the heat.' I thought as I walked through Spargus' streets. What Lyla had said bothered me still. How could she have known that about me? And what did she mean when she'd said the ones we love will be put in extreme danger? And who?

_'Well, Keira obviously in Jak's case.'_ Ambika scoffed. _'And, oh, I dunno, Torn, perhaps?'_

'Shut up.' I snapped, feeling myself blush. 'There's a big difference in Keira and Torn.'

_'But you wish there wasn't, right?'_ Ambika teased. _'Raye, does something feel off to you?'_

'Off?' I questioned. 'How so?'

_'I'm not sure… something just feels wrong with this. Where's Jak?'_

I looked around. Where WAS Jak? I couldn't remember… then it hit me. 'He's still at Lyla's, sleeping.'

_'Oh, right. Never mind.'_

I shook my head, chuckling slightly. Memory problems, there was something new for me to tease Ambika about. Looking up at the sky, I gasped.

It was the deepest shade of blood red I'd ever seen, and dark black dots flew across the sky with impossible speed. _'Raye!'_ Ambika yelled, making me jerk to the side. A blast of what appeared to be dark eco flew by me, scraping my side. I cried out in pain. The eco burnt the skin it touched, like…

My head snapped up to rest on the creatures before me, and my breath caught in my throat. Covered in dark purple crystal, they stood at least six feet tall. Spikes rose from the armor they wore, and they radiated evil intentions.

_"Bcaqhod np ehn, np lwddu. _One said, his hand still smoking from the blast. _"Bcaqhod np ehn, np lwddu." _

Only, what I heard was: _"Forgive my aim, my queen._ _I only meant to save you."_

I turned my head to see what I was being 'saved' from. Behind me was a body, most definitely elfin, laying in a shuddering pile. One of the things walked over to the body and lifted something curved and deadly looking out of the person's hand. Bowing before me, he offered it up.

My sharp intake of breath and my racing heart were all that I could hear. In the crystalline claws of the creature kneeling in front of me was Torn's dagger. I stood, shaking from horror, and walked over to the body. Kneeling, I rolled it over so I could see its face. I fell back with a shriek, my hands over my mouth.

Torn lay before me, eyes closed and breathing shallowly. The eco blast had torn a huge hole in his stomach, and his blood was splattered all over the ground. "No…" I whispered. "Torn… why?"

Sharp pain shot through my gut. I looked down to see another dagger protruding from my abdomen, a weathered fist clasped around it. My gaze moved to Torn's face. He was glaring at me so fiercely and with so much hate I wanted to cry.

Oh, wait a second; I already was. "Because you betrayed us." He spat at me. His hand slipped off the dagger and fell back to the ground. Above my own racing one, I could hear his heart slowing and finally stopping as he let out a shuddering breath.

"You did, you know." I turned to see Errol standing behind me. Or, at least, what USED to be Errol. His entire body was now robotic, save the left half of his face, where a crop of his shocking orange-red hair and faded KG tattoos could be seen. "You and Jak both did, after you refused to stop the invasion."

I looked back down at Torn's face, reaching out to touch it. I stopped before I did. My hand… it was Ambika's! I looked down at my body. Purple crystal armor like the creatures covered my body (though 'covered' is hardly the right word. I had more skin showing than I would have ever felt comfortable with). Errol pulled me up and yanked the dagger out of me. The tip was barely covered with blood. But that was impossible… Torn had stabbed me with it! I winced at the thought.

"Dispose of this." Errol ordered the creatures, gesturing to Torn's body. He looked over at me, and I was suddenly very aware of his arm wrapped around my waist, holding me to him. "Unless you have a better idea?"

_**'RAYE! Wake up!'**_

I shot up in my bed with a scream. I looked down at my body, patting myself over with my hands. No armor, just my now slightly wrinkled clothing. And my hands, no talons, no bleach white skin, just mine. I drew my knees up to my chest, burying my face in them, letting out small, relieved sobs. 'It was a nightmare… just a nightmare…'

_'That was no normal nightmare.'_ Ambika growled.

**'I sensed something dark invading Raye's mind. It was preventing me from waking either of you. I managed to pull Ambika out when she sensed something was wrong with the world you observed.'**

'What was that?' I asked, standing and going over to the dresser and looking in the mirror hanging above it. Tears tracks stained my face, but my eyes were dry now.

_'Maybe it was that 'contamination' Lyla warned you about.'_

**'What better way to turn you than to make you think the ones you care for most have betrayed you?'** Angeni said softly, her crystal voice saddened.

I closed my eyes and bent my head, taking deep breaths to calm myself down. When my heart finally stopped racing, I released my death grip on the dresser. "I should find Jak." I murmured aloud. "Maybe he had the same dream…" Walking out of my room, I looked around for my twin. Not finding him in his room, the kitchen, or anywhere else in Lyla's apartment, I headed outside. Ah yes. Outside.

Out of the oven and into the… well, something hotter than the goddamn oven. So sue me, I am NOT the most eloquent person in the world.

"DEATH FROM ABOVE!" A very familiar voice yelled as something landed on my head. This 'something' happened to be a soon-to-be-dead Ottsel.

"Daxter…" I said calmly.

He poked his head down in front of my face. "Yes Raye?"

I couldn't help it; the expression on his face was just too funny, and I started laughing. "Daxter… ge-get ah-off of my heh-head!" I gasped between my giggles. Daxter grinned at me madly and climbed down to my shoulder. "You're suicidal." I told him as soon as I stopped laughing.

"Raye, if you really wanted me dead, you'd have done it a LONG time ago." Daxter said cockily, leaning against my head.

He did have a point. "Yeah, yeah. Don't push it." I told him, tickling his stomach. "Where's Jak and why aren't you bugging him?"

"Down at the beach." Daxter told me, climbing back on top of my head. I rolled my eyes but didn't say anything. Hey, if I was getting weird looks because I had an Ottsel on my head and not because I was 'Raye the eco freak,' I could deal with it. "Kleiver stopped by while you were asleep. Said he had a 'challenge' for Jak." Daxter said "challenge" like one would "cute, fluffy bunny."

I sighed and shook my head carefully. Hearing Dax complain wasn't the best way to spend the morning. "Don't let Kleiver hear you saying that, alright? Me and Jak have enough trouble on our hands with this stupid 'trying not to be heroes' gig."

"Oh, so THAT'S what he's so mad about." Daxter said. "Well, guess that makes the 'words not to say around Jak' list considerably longer."

I laughed. "Yeah. Let's see, there's 'Keira'…"

"'Heroes'…"

"'Save the world'…"

"That's more than one word." Daxter pointed out.

I rolled my eyes. "Okay, fine. 'Save' and 'the' and 'world,' in that order. Better?"

"Yep." Daxter said, sliding back down to my shoulder. "There's Jak!" He said, pointing out my all too easy to spot brother. The eco called to me like a beacon.

Jak, who had obviously heard Daxter, smiled and walked over, holding up a second light eco crystal. "Look what I've got."

"Where'd you get this?" I asked, taking the crystal and examining it carefully.

He smirked. "Apparently, it's the trophy for whoever holds the record on the turret gun. It used to be Kleiver's." He added, his voice taking on a smug tone.

I groaned as I handed it back to him. "Jaaaaak…" I whined, drawing his name out into a whine. "Why do you have to alienate the really big, mean guys?"

"Because I'm a guy and you love me for it." He said, putting an arm around my shoulders. Daxter climbed back over to Jak's shoulder as my brother tugged on my hair. "By the way, Sleeping Beauty, what drugs did you smuggle out here? I couldn't get you to wake up this morning."

_'Tell him about that dream!'_ Ambika hissed.

I nodded slightly. Slipping out from under Jak's arm, I pulled him off to the side of the road. "I need to tell you about something…"

As I finished recounting my nightmare, Jak looked more worried than ever. "Raye, this could be serious. I haven't had any dreams anywhere CLOSE to like that, eco induced or not, since we've been banished, but this…"

"Does anyone else notice that all the freaky weird stuff keeps happening to Raye?" Daxter questioned. **(a/n: I KNOW you were all thinking it!)**

Jak and I looked at each other as it dawned on us. I'm the one who got scratched by the light eco crystal shard. I'm the one who's having the freaky nightmare/vision things. "It must be because of Ambika." Jak murmured thoughtfully.

_'He did NOT just blame me for all this.'_

Obviously, Ambika's annoyance showed on my face, because Jak quickly clarified. "No, listen to me. Because of the extra eco treatments that Praxis put you through, you have more dark eco in your body, and Ambika is more powerful than Lykaios."

'You know, when he puts it that way, it DOES seem like this is all your fault.'

_'Shut. Up.'_

"So, what, that makes these Dark Makers think that I'm their queen or something?" I hissed.

Jak put his hands on my shoulders. "No, because that isn't going to happen. We aren't letting Errol win this."

Daxter let out an over-theatrical gasp. "Does this mean…? Could you possibly be saying that you want to be a… a…"

Jak growled. "No. Not a hero. But like HELL is that psycho freak laying a hand, mechanical or not, on my baby sister. I'm stopping Errol, but the world can fend for itself."

I smiled slightly. "Thanks Jak. But could we stop with the 'baby' sister stuff? I mean, we're nine-freaking-teen for Mar's sake. Cut me some slack, will ya?" I asked, punching him lightly.

There was a squawk from behind us and all three of us looked over to see Pecker landing on a pile of rocks nearby. "Do you have ANY idea how hard it is to find you two?" He asked, wings on his hips. "I've looked all over this-" Insert indignant squawk-like noise here- "City for you!"

"Don't get all pissy with us just because Onin isn't here to help you lick your wounds." I snapped. Pecker flinched. Ooh, I hit a nerve! Points for Raye!

"What do you want, Pecker?" Jak sighed, crossing his arms.

"It is time for your final arena battle." Pecker frowned, obviously annoyed that we didn't care at all about his complaints.

I grinned. "Sweet. Time for some Marauder head bashing!"

Pecker shook his head. "No. This challenge is for Jak alone."

"What?!" Both of us yelled at once.

"Hey, I'm just the messenger. You've got a problem with it, take it up with Damas." Pecker said, flying off.

I growled. "Great. I need to go blow something up really bad, too…"

"You'll get your chance, I'm sure." Jak told me, ruffling my hair. "And you can always watch as I go bash some Marauder heads in." I shoved him toward the arena.

"Oh, very clever, Mr. Wise Guy. Get going before I bash YOUR head in."

After Jak left, I realized I really DIDN'T have anything better to do than to go watch his fight, so I headed toward the arena as well.

"Raye!" I turned to see Lyla running toward me.

"Feeling better?" I asked as she caught up.

She nodded. "Yes. So, this is Jak's solo fight, huh?"

"Yeah, why? What's so special that Jak had to fight on his own?"

Lyla looked surprised. "No one told you?"

"Told me what?" I asked, getting confused and more than a little worried.

"Raye," Lyla started softly, her eyes meeting mine, "The last battle for citizenship to Spargus is a fight to the death… with another Wastelander."

I blanched. "What?"

_'We need to get to that fight. NOW.'_

--

Lyla led me to the side entrance into the Arena stands. We were so close to the lava I could almost hear my flesh sizzle. "Lyla, if I start to scream something to try and help Jak, you may need to clap your hand over my mouth to make me stop." I told her quietly, not joking in the least. Lyla nodded, then we both looked up as an all too familiar (and all too annoying) voice rang through the large dome.

"Greetings brave fighters!" Pecker yelled. I nearly laughed as his overdramatic gesturing made him hit Damas in the face. "The one, the only," Pecker hit Damas again. This time I let out a small laugh, along with half the crowd, "The greatest highness of all highnesses," Now even Damas was getting annoyed. I saw him put a hand over his eyes, and he was shaking his head. Daxter was pretending to check his non-existent watch, "The magnificent, eminently-"

"Enough!" Damas barked. "Just get on with it."

I had to strain my ears to hear this next part, but hear it I did. "Sorry, I got a bit carried away." A pause. "Did I mention how fabulous your hair looks?"

"Pecker!"

"Yes, right." Pecker brought his voice back up to 'everyone listen to me' volume. "Another round of games has been called. This is combat to the death. Good luck, and may the bravest man, or in some cases, animal, win."

I slumped in my seat as I thought about this. Jak had to fight to the death, against another Wastelander. Well, it wasn't as if Jak hadn't killed someone before…

As Jak walked cautiously around the metal platforms, probably expecting the usual endless waves of Marauders to tear apart, I saw, on the other side of the Arena, a slim pathway extending from the side of the rock wall. A portion of the wall slid away, and his opponent stepped out.

I nearly screamed out of pure shock, but Lyla's hand was squeezing mine tightly, reminding me to sit and do nothing.

But how, HOW, could I just sit here and do nothing when Jak's opponent was…? I put my elbows on my knees and rested my forehead against my fists, peering out between the space between my hands. I saw Jak jump to a nearby platform with a large crate in the center, taller than Jak himself, and his opponent's head turned. Slowly, and moving more quietly than I thought possible for a man of his size, the man jumped over to the platform as well, on the opposite side.

Behind me, the crowd was getting restless. They wanted blood; I closed my eyes and wished that I was still in Haven. This was… primal and barbaric. I wanted to go home.

Circling the platform slowly, Jak's opponent leapt out from behind the corner he had been hiding behind, looking surprised to see who it was he was up against.

"Sig?" Jak asked, surprised.

"Jak? Daxter?" Sig asked, his surprise just as clear. I looked around to see the crowd's confused looks. Right, they didn't have super enhanced hearing. They just weren't used to seeing the two opponents talking with each other peacefully.

Daxter hopped up, holding his arms out like he was going to give Sig a hug. "SIG!"

Sig let out a gruff chuckle. "Well, don't you two look sorrier than ever."

"What are you doing here?" Jak asked, his tone quite a bit happier. I closed my eyes. Oh Jak… 'you stupid, stupid IDIOT! It's a fight to the death, you moron! SIG is here to kill you!' I wanted to scream at him, but bit my lip instead, gagging as I tasted my own blood as the skin broke. I wiped it off on the back of my palm, ignoring the slight burn.

"Honing my skills." Sig told him, the friendliness draining out of his tone. "Let's finish this."

And this is where my brilliant brother made mistake number two. The first one was the stupid question he'd just asked. Jak stepped back, his Blaster down at his side, holding his free hand up in a 'stop' gesture. "Whoa, come on Sig. I'm not gonna fight you."

"If we don't, he'll kill us both." There was the slightest jerk of the Peace Maker's barrel toward the throne, and consequently, Damas. "It's the rule of the arena. Sorry cherry, nothing personal." Sig told Jak, aiming the Peace Maker at Jak's chest. Jak stepped back, shocked.

After a moment of nothing, Sig lowered his gun and tossed it to the ground.

"Blasphemy!" Damas' furious voice echoed around the arena as he leapt up. "One must destroy the other! Complete the test or face worse pain!"

Straining, I could just barely hear Sig mutter, "I just know I'm gonna regret this."

When Damas saw that neither man was going to make a move to kill the other, his anger became almost tangible. "Seize them!" He ordered. Guards poured down into the arena, from where I'm not sure, and grabbed Jak and Sig. I stood and walked out. I think this was the first time that Jak had been taken away under arrest and I wasn't with him.

It kinda hurt.

--

SC: Okay, so, there we have it. I think that it's silly to have all those Marauders come out, and then have Sig come out of nowhere like they did in the game. Therefore, you get a two minute non-fight instead of a seven minute Marauder slaughter fest and then the two minutes of non-fighting. And Raye's going to have hers next chapter. R&R please!

Ja ne

SC


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: I don't own Jak, Daxter, or any other character that was created by Naughty Dog.

--

Chapter 21

Retribution

The guards 'escorted' Sig and Jak to the Palace, where Damas was waiting. He stood as the two of them were shoved in front of his throne. He started down the stairs as he began to speak. "How dare the two of you defile the purity of the arena!" He yelled, his eyes flicking between them before settling on Sig. "Sig, your time in Haven City has poisoned you! And you, newcomer!" He turned to Jak, stepping down in front of him. "You deserve no mercy." Turning he walked back up the steps, stopping just before the top. "I should toss both of you into the jaws of the desert. However," The king turned back around halfway, facing Sig.

"Sig, your years of service as our spy in Haven has earned you a chance to redeem yourself. But only this once!" Damas hissed, his staff inches from Sig's face. All points to Sig, though, who didn't once flinch.

"A spy?" Jak questioned, his gaze suspicious and curious.

Sig elbowed him, a large clue to shut his trap. "Just shut up. I'll tell you later." He muttered back, straightening just as Damas turned began speaking again.

"There is a nest of Metalpedes not too far from here. They have been harassing our artifact carriers for some time. I want you to drive into the heart of the nest and take out all the creatures you find inside." He smirked at them over his shoulder. "I'd say good luck, but then again, luck won't help you." Damas chuckled, walking past them and taking the elevator down.

"Where's he going?" Daxter asked, finally peeking out from behind Jak.

Sig frowned, then his eye widened. "Is Raye with you?"

"Yeah."

Sig closed his eyes, his frown deepening. "Then he's probably going to see her fight. And 'cause of what just happened, if Raye refuses to fight… well, Damas will probably have her killed."

"What?" Jak asked, alarmed. "Killed?!"

"Yeah. Damas doesn't take defiance too well. I thought for sure we were dead. Though sending us into the Metalpede nest… it's as good as killing us." The elevator rose back up, and Sig motioned for Jak to follow him. "Come on, we'd better get this over with."

--

There were guards everywhere in the arena; Raye could see them posted along the exits, and among the confused crowd in the stands. Sig was their champion, and he'd just refused to kill some new stranger from out of nowhere. But Jak was still alive, and she hoped that was a good sign.

"The second battle will now begin!" Pecker crowed as Damas sat down in his throne.

Raye caught the Vulcan mod he tossed down to her. "Do not disappoint me like your brother did, girl." 'So I'm just 'girl' again, huh?' She thought bitterly.

Raye turned away from Damas without replying and stepped onto the elevator down to the arena. It rose as she leapt off, and she immediately pulled out her Blaster, her eyes scanning the lava pit for signs of her opponent. A scuffle from her right, and Raye flipped around, opening fire on the figure who had been attempting to sneak up on her. They leapt behind one of the metal boxes, luring her into an obvious trap.

Choosing a more subtle option, Raye slunk around the pathway, switching to her newly acquired Vulcan Fury. She circled the box once before realizing that the person no longer occupied the platform. There was a yell from behind her, and Raye turned just in time to see the glint of metal coming down toward her. Dropping her gun, she fell to the ground and her would-be murderer rolled over her back.

_'Fuck this; get off the ground!'_ Ambika yelled. Scrambling up, her Morph Gun forgotten where she'd dropped it, she ran to the other side of the platforms, leaping behind one of the metal boxes. She curled into a ball, rocking back on her heels, making herself as small a target as possible as the transformation started.

It had never been so painful before; Raye let out a scream as the spines tore through her skin, blood pouring down her back as the skin on her shoulder blades was ripped to shreds and the bloody wings unfolded. The warm liquid temporarily blinded it her as it fell from her forehead into her eyes as the dark horns grew from her skull with a painful grinding of bone. Her fingers screamed with pain, threatening to break, as their nails turned into talons capable of slicing through stone. The marks on her palm sizzled beneath her gloves.

'Why did it hurt so much?' Raye moaned in her mind as she uncurled from her position on the ground, crouching like a cat instead, her body still wracking from the change.

_'It's HER!'_ Ambika growled. _'She's trying to "heal" you as the transformations are happening! It's stopping me from using the dark eco properly!'_

**'I-I'm sorry Raye.'** Angeni said meekly. **'I didn't do it on purpose… but you were in pain and I thought- Raye, above you!'**

Raye's head jerked back to see her opponent crouching on the box above her. Instinct kicked in, and Raye leapt off the platform, the hot updraft from the lava carrying her up. She hissed in pain as something sliced her calf from knee to ankle, and again as the dark eco healed it. 'Where are they? I can't see anything with all this blood in my eyes!' Raye said, wiping at her eyes furiously.

She let out a shriek as something latched onto her from behind. _'I'd say they were behind u-AAAAGGGHHH!'_

Raye let out a scream of pain as something sharp and metallic stabbed into her stomach, ripping apart her insides as the person wielding it _twisted_, hard. Red exploded in Raye's brain, and she fell to the ground, landing painfully on the metal.

Feet away, she heard the soft clink of her opponent landing. **'Raye, you must pull the dagger out.'**

"I… I can't…" She whimpered aloud, her eyes tearing from the combined pain of the dagger, her fall, and reverting back to normal. The footsteps were growing closer.

**'Raye, I can heal you, but not with that thing still inside you. If you cannot or will not remove it, I will.'** Her hand closed on the knife and pulled, bringing it out with not so much as a sign to anyone, Raye's mouth being firmly covered by her other hand. A warm, soothing feeling spread through her body, and she felt the gash in her stomach seal without so much as a bit of pain.

The footsteps stopped beside Raye, and she pretended to still be injured. Hesitantly, a hand grasped her shoulder and turned her over. Raye lashed out with her fist, the one holding the knife, the blade ramming through the person's throat. "Nothing personal." Raye whispered as she pulled the blade back out, her opponent- now a corpse- falling on the metal beside her.

Gradually, a cheering spread throughout the room, eventually growing so large that it echoed off every crevice and seemed to multiply the occupants times ten.

Raye grimaced. She was covered with blood, had received what would've been a normally fatal wound, and had just killed a person in cold blood, and they cheered for her. She remembered her time back in Haven, where becoming a Wastelander like big ol' tough guy Sig was a goal she aspired to. Now she just wished that she could back to the days where the only things she had to kill were Metal Heads and Krimzon Guard Death Bots.

Slowly, she walked over and retrieved her Morph Gun, sliding it back into the holster on her back. Stepping on the elevator, Raye had never been angrier to have stand before Damas. Apparently literally this time around, as he was standing on the platform to greet her instead of sitting on his throne.

He looked down at her proudly. "I must say that I am impressed with you, Raye." 'What happened to "girl"?' Raye wondered traitorously, realizing that she preferred the derogatory term to hearing her actual name. "You have earned your right to become a citizen of Spargus." He handed her a fully completed Battle Amulet, which she took and held tightly in her fist.

Damas began to walk off, but Raye stopped him. "Wait." She said quietly. Damas turned around. She held out the dagger. "What do you want me to do with this?"

He paused to consider the question. "Consider it your trophy." He told her with a smirk. Raye nodded, obviously shaken by his flippant response, and walked off.

--

"So, where have you and Raye been stayin'?" Sig asked Jak as they left the garage.

"With the woman who took care of Raye while she was unconscious." Jak told him. "Her name's Lyla."

Sig blinked, looking startled. "Lyla?"

A door opened near them. "Oh, good, Jak. You're back." Lyla said with a relieved sigh. Then, "Sig!" Jak did a double take as Lyla appeared from seemingly nowhere and threw her arms around the much bigger elf. Her embrace didn't even encompass the elf's chest.

He chuckled and hugged her back. "Hey sis."

"SIS?!" Daxter yelped.

Lyla stepped away from Sig and nodded. "Yep. You'd never guess it, me being related to Mr. Muscle Head over here." She said, elbowing her brother in the gut. "But Sig's my big bro."

"Lyla, why did you say it was good that I was back? And where's Raye?"

She turned to Jak, suddenly serious. "She's inside. But… she's… well, you should probably see for yourself." Jak turned and ran inside.

"Raye?" He asked as he pushed her door open. A first scan didn't show him anything, but as he stepped into the room, he saw her sitting in a corner, her knees drawn to her chest. Clutched in her fist was a gleaming curved dagger, much like Torn's, only the edges were serrated like a saw. "Where did you get that?"

"From my fight." She said, her voice venomous. "Damas said to keep it as my trophy." Raye spat the king's name out like it tasted bad.

Jak knelt down next to her, touching her shoulder lightly. The dagger fell to the floor with a clatter as Raye threw her arms around Jak's neck and sobbed, even though no tears would come. "Jak, I saw his face- the person I had to k-kill." She hiccupped. "H-he w-wasn't even as- as old as us…"

--

"Raye fought Alexei?" Sig questioned. "But he was only fifteen!"

"AND one of the best warriors we have." Lyla reminded him. "You taught him yourself, remember?"

Sig looked away. "Yeah, I remember Lyla. You think Damas was actually trying to kill Raye with that stunt?"

"After that little number you and Jak pulled, I wouldn't put it past him." Both of them looked up as Jak and Raye walked out from the back hall.

Raye smiled. "Hey Sig. Heard you and Jak got to take out some big'n'nasties."

Sig smirked. "Some of the nastiest. Now come here and give me a hug." Raye laughed and walked over, becoming quickly enveloped in the bigger elf's grasp. He pushed her away and looked her up and down, then noticed the amulet still clutched in her hand. "Well, lookit you. You're a real Wastelander now."

Raye looked away, her expression falling. "Yeah. Lucky me." She muttered.

"Hey, we all had to do it Raye. No one's gonna judge you for doing what you had to do." Sig told her comfortingly. Raye smiled up at him and nodded.

Lyla poked Sig in the arm. "But you, big brother, are going to be the laughingstock of Spargus. Letting yourself get trounced by a stranger. I'm ashamed of you." She smacked his chest.

"'Trounced?'" Sig asked incredulously. "I don't know what fight you were watching, Lyls, but Jak and I both got dragged out of that arena."

Lyla smirked at him and left the room for the second. "Yes, but Jak wasn't the idiot who threw down his 'precious baby,' now was he?" She asked, returning with Sig's Peace Maker in her hands.

Sig smiled at her sheepishly and took the weapon. "Thanks sis."

"Oh, that reminds me." Raye said suddenly, turning and slugging Sig in the arm. "Why didn't you ever tell us you had a sister?"

Everyone laughed.

--

SC: Ugh, why does the hammer of inspiration seem to deem it necessary to strike at- holy shit- FOUR IN THE MORNING?!

Puck: (whistles innocently and kicks hammer off-screen)

SC: Oh well, whatever. Review please! I'm off to go get some much needed sleep…

Ja ne

SC (SC: Zzzzzz…)


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer: I don't own Jak, Daxter, or any other character that was created by Naughty Dog.

--

Chapter 22

Reunion

"Morning Sig." Raye greeted, walking out into the living room area of Lyla's house/hospital/whatever. "Are Jak and Daxter around here anywhere?"

"They went out a little while ago cherry. Told me to say to wait for 'em if you woke up before they got back." Sig told her.

She shook her, sighing. "That idiot…" She muttered, sitting down on the chair next to Sig. It had been several weeks since the twins' final arena fights, and both had gradually adapted to Spargus customs, with some help from Sig and Lyla. "What did they go to do now?"

"Jak didn't say." Lyla offered as she came in. "Oh, and I finished fixing your gloves." She said, holding them out.

Raye grinned and took them. "Thanks Lyla." She said, pulling the black, leather like objects over her hands. Kleiver had sent her out on an artifact run the other day, and the sandstorm had ripped them up pretty good. "You know, I almost wish that Kleiver didn't have to send me out on missions in Jak's place."

"He doesn't have to." Lyla said. "Jak earned his citizenship when him and Sig destroyed the Metalpede eggs. Kleiver's just an asshole."

The door opened and all three turned to see Jak standing there. "Raye, we need to talk." He said, walking over to her. Raye recognized the serious tone of Jak's voice and realized that something bad was happening. She stood up and followed him back to his room.

"What's going on?" She asked as Jak shut the door. Jak pulled his communicator out of his pouch, since his armor impeded his ability to wear it on his wrist.

"Listen to this." He flicked a knob on the side, and sound filled the room.

It was fuzzy at first, but as Raye listened, her ears could pick out a voice in the static. "_…oadcasting on all channels._" Droned a robotic voice. It abruptly changed as a new, definitely FEMALE, definitely familiar voice took over. "_Jak, Raye, if you can hear this, meet me out at the Oasis to the northeast of Spargus. I can explain everything there._" The robot voice took back over and the message repeated itself again and again, until Jak turned it off.

"That… was that Ashelin?" Raye asked, looking up at Jak's face.

He nodded. "I think so. How does she know we're alive?"

"I don't think she does." Raye murmured. "She was just broadcasting the message out to any signal near enough to pick it up, hoping that we would hear it."

"Does anyone else think this screams 'trap'?" Daxter asked.

"That's why we're not going unarmed." Jak told him as he turned and opened the door.

Raye blinked, surprised. "Wait; we're going?" She asked, grabbing his shoulder. "What happened to not wanting anything to do with Haven City? I thought you wanted to forget all that."

"We'll just go see what she has to say. Then we'll leave." Jak told her, looking at her over his shoulder. "Ashelin gave me the beacon Damas used to find us. We owe her that much." Raye nodded understandingly, following him out. "We're heading out to the Oasis." Jak told Sig and Lyla as they passed. Both nodded slightly, acknowledging they heard even if they didn't look up from what they were doing.

--

"Kleiver!" Raye shouted as they entered the garage.

The large elf turned and glared at her. "What'd'ya want, ya little blighter?"

"I need to borrow a car. Jak and I are heading out to the Oasis for a bit." She said, ignoring the insulting nickname. "Mind if I borrow the Sand Shark?"

"Can't." He grunted. "Bein' repaired from the last time you took it out."

Raye rolled her eyes. "Alright, the Dune Hopper then?" Kleiver tossed her the keys, which she caught easily. "Thanks. Let's go." She said, turning back to Jak and Daxter. As soon as she turned around, Daxter saluted her mockingly.

Jak smacked him. "Don't go there, Dax." He warned, following Raye.

Somehow, neither of them was too surprised to see a blue Hellcat Cruiser sitting by the Oasis's calm waters. Raye brought the Hopper to a halt several yards away, jumping out and walking over to Ashelin.

As the two of them neared the red-haired Governess, who had been leaning against her vehicle, seemingly relaxing- though both Jak and Raye knew this wasn't true; Ashelin Praxis NEVER relaxed- Daxter jumped off Jak's shoulder and ran over to stand in front of Ashelin.

The first thought through both elves heads was, 'Oh no, not already.'

The Ottsel grinned up at Ashelin. "Hey baby. Ya' thought you'd dumped me, huh?" Ashelin rolled her eyes, glaring down at the loudmouthed rodent. "I knew you'd be back for some more Orange lovin'! Get a good look, 'cause it's the last time you get to see it."

"And I'm sure she's thrilled." Raye said dryly, quickly turning her attentions from the Ottsel to Ashelin. "What are you doing here, Ashe?"

Ashelin smiled and took a step toward them. "Jak, Raye. It's good to see you again."

Daxter jumped between the twins and Ashelin, making the Governess step back. "Listen, toots, you left us in the desert. So talk to the tail, 'cause the whiskers ain't listening. We out, Jak." He said, turning around to walk away.

He stopped as Jak spoke up. "That beacon you gave me… thanks." He said awkwardly.

She nodded. "I knew Damas would find you. He doesn't miss much in this desert."

Raye eyed Ashelin suspiciously. "How do you know Damas?"

The red-head shook her head. "It doesn't matter now. I called you out here for a reason." Jak and Raye crossed their arms. "I need the two of you to come back to the city. We're losing the fight. Veger is drunk on power and he's taken command. He doesn't understand what he's up against! I need you two-"

Ashelin stopped as the sound of a roaring engine filled the air, and then a Marauder car flew over the hill behind them, and a bullet flew toward the three. "Look out!" Jak warned, leaping out of the way.

More cars surrounded them within a matter of seconds, Marauders leaping off the hoods and pointing colossal blades at the three elves. "Compensating much?" Raye muttered

"Not the time for jokes, Raye." Jak snapped, reaching behind him slowly for his gun.

But, unfortunately, Marauders were raised knowing how to spot when someone was going for a weapon, and attacked. Jak slammed his elbow into one's stomach as it came toward him, his face stoic as the sound of ribs cracking reached his ears. Grabbing the Marauder's wrist, the blonde elf _twisted_ it, snapping it so fiercely that the shattered bone pierced through the flesh, blood spilling onto the sand. The Marauder howled and clutched the broken appendage, only to be knocked into black unconsciousness as Jak slammed his fist against the wooden mask, breaking the wild elf's nose.

Picking up the fallen sword, Jak swung it around, catching another in the gut as he tried to sneak up on our blonde hero. No, I don't care if his hair IS mostly green now. That isn't the point.

"Hey! Storyline!"

Oh, right. Sorry Daxter. What are you doing under that rock?

"What he always does during fights. Hiding."

Be nice Raye. Okay, now, lessee… where was I…? Oh, yes. Jak doing some serious Marauder ass kicking.

The blade's curved tip ripped a jagged gash across the huge elf's middle, blood pouring out onto the sand and turning it into disgustingly crimson mud. Blasts were being fired behind him, probably from Ashelin as he heard the loud whine of Raye's Vulcan Fury elsewhere, followed by the sound of an exploding vehicle.

"They just keep coming!" Ashelin said, shooting another three Marauders that were attempting to broadside her, flipping over the desperately swinging blade of the last to fall.

"No, this is the last of them!" Raye shouted back, her foot making firm connection with the side of one Marauder's head and snapping it around to over the recommended ninety degrees. "There aren't any more coming over the hills now!"

Jak leapt to the side as a flaming vehicle attempted to run him over. The unlucky driver then promptly slammed into a tree, pushing the car's tolerance for punishment past its limit and forcing it to explode in an inferno of kamikaze goodness.

I lurve me some explosions. Ahem Aaaannnyyyyways…

Ashelin holstered her pistol in its holster on her waist as the last of the bodies twitched its last in the now bloody sand. "Thanks." She breathed, her voice tired.

Jak merely shrugged.

Running a hand through her crimson hair, she looked back at the two elves. "I almost forgot; Keira wanted me to give you these." She walked over to her Hellcat, which was in perfect shape, save a few stray burn marks. Nothing a quick paint job wouldn't fix. Turning, she revealed two small, flat, boards.

"Our JET Boards!" Raye gasped, taking one. "But, I thought they were melted down…" She murmured, frowning.

"New and improved." Ashelin told her, gesturing for her board. Raye gave it back, and Ashelin flipped it over and pushed a small red button near the end of the board, close to where one's heel would go. A small burst of blue light shot out of the bottom of the board.

"What was that?" Jak asked, examining the board in his hands. He found a similar button there.

"Quick eco burst. It'll stun most of your enemies, and kill some of the smaller ones." Ashelin explained, handing the board back to Raye. "Jak… Raye… I need the two of you to come back to Haven. Your friends need you." She hesitated, glancing over at Jak. "I… need you."

If Jak noticed the look Ashelin sent in his direction, he didn't respond. "The city threw us out, remember? They can rot for all I care." He said, looking away. Raye stared at her brother, stunned. Sure, Jak could hold a grudge, but this…?

Ashelin reached a hand out to touch his shoulder. "But what about your-"

Jak jerked his arm away at Ashelin's touch, turning his back to her. "Forget it! Just leave. I have new friends now." Daxter looked up at Jak, surprised as well, then turned back to Ashelin and nodded, his gaze fierce.

The Governess looked down sadly, her eyes closed. "So the heroes I knew did die in the desert." Her gaze drifted back up to Jak. "Or was it long before that?" Unbeknownst to Ashelin, Jak flinched at these words. She put a gloved hand on his shoulder and forced him around to face her. "Don't you remember who you are?" She asked, forcing something into his hand. Her fingers lingered a few moments longer than necessary before she stepped away.

Jak looked down at his fist to see the familiar Seal of Mar in his palm. He held it between his thumb and forefinger and raised it to eye level, examining it with a look of sadness on his face. After a moment, he frowned and turned away. "I'm through saving the world. C'mon, Raye." He ordered, beginning to walk back to the Dune Hopper.

Raye looked between the two before putting a hand on Jak's shoulder. "Wait for me." She said quietly, running over to Ashelin.

Ashelin smiled at her, but it was sad. "You aren't coming back, are you?"

Raye shook her head. "No. Jak's my brother, Ashelin. I'm going to stick by him." She looked away, rubbing her arm apologetically. "I…"

Ashelin nodded understandingly. "It's alright. Here." She said, handing Raye a smaller Seal that hung from a small white string. "Samos wanted me to give this to you."

Raye smiled and tucked the amulet into her pack before hugging Ashelin. "Be careful. Good luck."

Ashelin smiled softly before returning the gesture. "You too. Stay alive."

Raye laughed as she stepped away. "I've come too far to die now." She said with a slight shrug, turning and running over to the Dune Hopper. She didn't start the vehicle until Ashelin's Hellcat was out of sight, when she turned the key and let the engine start with a roar. "Where to now?" She asked, her arms hanging limply over the top of the wheel.

Jak looked up at her from the Seal in his hands, which he hadn't stopped fiddling with since Ashelin had put it in his hand. "Monk Temple. Let's see if we can get that door open." She nodded, her face blank, and pushed down on the gas pedal, pulling a quick u-turn so they didn't fall into the Oasis and heading toward the rock platforms to the Temple.

After driving for a few blissfully Marauder free minutes, Jak turned to Raye. "Okay, what's wrong with you?"

Raye looked over at him in surprise, her hands jerking on the steering wheel a bit. Straightening the car out, she glanced over at him, still watching where she was going. "What do you mean, 'wrong with me?' I'm fine."

"Back there, with Ashelin."

"I gave her a hug and said goodbye. We WERE friends, remember?" Raye said coldly.

Jak was silent for a moment. "I never said that we weren't."

There was a harsh laugh. "Yeah right. And I quote, 'Forget it, just leave. I've got new friends now.' If that doesn't say 'go away, I hate you' I don't know what does." She muttered. There was a moment of silence. "You do realize that Keira's in that city you just conde-"

The car veered off its course, scraping up against the side of a cliff, as Jak punched Raye, sending her sprawling over the side of the door. Raye touched the already forming bruise on her cheek, which was healing just as rapidly as it was appearing. Lowering her hand, she glared at Jak, and then slammed the bottom of her boot into his chest, ripping his door open and sending him flying back into the sand.

"Guys! What the hell are you doing?" Daxter shouted, leaping up in his seat.

Jak pushed himself up. "Stay out of this, Dax." He growled, standing and facing Raye, who had climbed out of the car.

-_Daxter's POV_-

I think I covered my eyes after Raye stormed over to Jak buried her fist in his stomach. But, seeing the two of them fight… it was like a zoomer wreck. You want to look away SO badly but you JUST. CAN'T. DO IT. So, I watched.

Jak fell back onto his ass (again), rolling out of the way of another well aimed hit to his stomach by Raye's foot. Grabbing her ankle, he flipped her over, giving Raye a mouthful of sand to eat. Mmm, yummy.

Raye pushed herself up onto her elbows, just as Jak reached over and grabbed a handful of her hair, pulling her to her feet. This equaled a very angry Raye slamming her elbow into Jak's nose. Cracking was heard all around, but it did make Jak let go. He stumbled back a few steps, now clutching his nose, with blood leaking between his fingers.

I pulled my hands away from my eyes. "What the hell?" I murmured, looking at the dripping blood. I was used to the weird violet red that Raye and Jak seemed to bleed, but now…

A multicolored swirl of red, violet, and white stained Jak's hands as he pulled them away from his healed nose. He stared at them for a moment, seemingly enthralled by the liquid. Then, he raised a palm toward Raye, and a bolt of purple lightning shot out of it. She didn't have a chance to dodge, taking the blow full on her chest, sending her flying back into one side of the path between the two cliffs.

"ENOUGH!" I shouted, making both of them turn toward me. "What the hell is wrong with you two?! You're supposed to be helping each other, not trying to kill each other!"

Oh yeah. I couldn't help but LOVE the fact that I could make them feel so guilty. I also couldn't help hating that the only time I could do it was when they were at each other's throats- usually literally.

Raye pulled herself up, not looking at Jak as she slid back into the driver's seat. Jak did the same, looking everywhere but Raye as we started back out toward Monk Temple. The two of them were so busy ignoring each other, in fact, that neither seemed to hear the heightening roar of engine noise. I clambered up to Jak's shoulder, my eyes widening. "Uh, guys, I hate to interrupt your sulking, but WE HAVE COMPANY!"

Both turned around to see what I had seen; a wave of Marauder vehicles had made a platoon of dark brown behind us. Obviously, they weren't too happy that we had destroyed (much less survived) their earlier attack.

"We can't fight off that many." Raye said, her tone disbelieving. I was kinda shocked too; who knew that the idiots wearing leather skirts could actually organize not one but TWO attacks in less than an hour? I scurried down back to Raye's lap as Jak reached around his back for his Morph Gun.

"Just drive." He ordered, getting onto his knees and turning around in his seat, aiming his Vulcan Fury at the onslaught behind us. His shots didn't seem to be having much effect at first, but finally one car blew up, and it became apparent that was all we needed. Having such a tight formation meant that if one of the cars blew up, you had both cars on its side get hit, and both of THEM blow up, and it just cause one big chain reaction of explosions.

"Nice shooting." Raye said as Jak slid back down in his seat. He didn't say anything, and Raye didn't try to get him to say anymore. I, quite frankly, had lost my patience for trying to reconcile those two, so I just stayed silent and curled up in Raye's lap. I relinquished my spot for one under the seat belt as we reached the island path that led out to the Monk Temple, not wanting to see how well Ottsels could swim.

We came to a halt just in front of the pillared entrance that barred the car from going any further, and sat in the silence left behind as the engine's noise deadened. "…sorry." Raye muttered. "I know that you miss Keira, and I shouldn't've said that."

Jak nodded, his eyes covered by his goggles. I couldn't help noticing, though, when he pulled them up, that his eyes were red rimmed. Raye must've noticed too, because she reached over and pulled him into a hug.

They both pulled back somewhat awkwardly after a moment. Jak grinned over at Raye slyly. "So…"

"Race you inside?"

"You're on."

I let out a sigh. Those two had the WEIRDEST mood swings, like, ever.

--

SC: Okay, so it's really kinda pointless, but I love having Jak and Raye fight, and then make up and be all immature. Consider it making up for the childhood they COULD'VE spent messing around with each other. Hm, possible spin off… which I can't do until I finish the other seventy spin offs I've promised people in my other stories. (Sigh) Well, unless I get a really good response. Then maybe I'll consider it.

Read and Review please!

Ja ne  
SC


	23. Chapter 23

SC: Eheh… um, hi everyone. Look, I know I haven't updated in a while but, um… well… my plot bunnies have been being picked off slowly but surely by vultures called 'junior year homework'. So, I haven't been able to catch any of the little boogers. That, and my muse has been trapped under a perpetual writer's block…

Puck: Freedom! Oh look, a rock. What a surprise

SC: You see? He's still cleaning the stone out of his fur. Anyway, I managed to catch up on my schoolwork and have gotten rid of the buzzards, but it took a while for my plot bunnies to start multiplying again. But they have. And I rejoice and apologize. So, here it is: my apology to you all in the form of eight pages of Unwanted Demons, Unthought of Angels. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Jak, Daxter, or any other character that was created by Naughty Dog.

--

Chapter 22

Annoying little tests

"I so totally beat you!"

"Yeah, whatever Raye. Just keep telling yourself that." Jak said with a laugh, punching Raye's shoulder.

Raye rolled her eyes. "Sore loser." She muttered, ducking back from the next swing aimed at the side of her head. "Hey!"

Jak laughed again and put an arm around her shoulders, pulling her over in a sort of half hug. "I wasn't actually gonna hit you." He told her with a teasing smile.

The raven-haired elf pushed at him. "Ah, get offa me you jerk." She finally managed to duck underneath his arm and ran a hand through her hair. "So, do you think these things will actually open up that door?" Raye asked, her tone softening as she pulled the Seal from underneath her shirt and examined in the light. It gleamed with a coppery sparkle in the sunlight from overhead.

Jak shrugged. "I don't see why they wouldn't. The door's the exact same as the one in Haven Forest."

"I guess." Raye said, still somewhat disbelieving, before letting the pendant fall against her chest lightly. "At least that freaky eye thing is still gone."

Daxter scoffed, sitting back on his tail and crossing his arms. "Yeah, no Eco Freak shish kabobs for Seem and her creepy monks."

"Bet they aren't too happy that we broke their security system." Jak smirked before glancing over at Raye, a mischievous gleam in his blue eyes. "Let's try to avoid the Spiders this time, huh Raye?"

"Shut it, you, or I'll make good on that wumpbee threat." She growled as the doors before them slid open, and a blast of dark eco shot at them through the now clear archway. "What the hell?!" Raye yelled out in surprise as she and Jak jumped to either side of the doors. Just in time, as a loud, buzzing object that gleamed dully in the light flew straight through the spot where the girl's head used to be a moment before, two others following it.

"Metal Jackets?" Jak asked, confused. The three flying Metal Heads zipped around the room, circling back around for another go at the twins.

Three quick Blaster shots promptly put an end to their attack, and the wasp-like creatures were bleeding on the ground, two exploding into deep purple sparks immediately as they hit the rock floor, the other falling with a dull 'thud' before beginning to screech its pain to the world. Jak kicked it, hard, caving the bug's head in. It immediately exploded as its comrades had, and the dark eco sparks danced up Jak's leg, sinking through his pant leg and boot and into the skin beneath.

"What the HELL are METAL HEADS doing here?!" Daxter screeched.

Jak turned around and walked over to the doors, where Raye was waiting, her Blaster resting on her shoulder. "I don't know, but it can't be anything good."

"And here I was worried about Raye getting bit by another Spider." Daxter sighed sarcastically. He soon found himself eating stone floor.

"Do not make me change the target of that threat, Dax." She warned, walking through the doors. "We coulda used that skull gem, you know."

A low buzz reached Jak's ears. "Just shut up and shoot." He told Raye, readjusting his Blaster just as another duo of Metal Jackets rounded the corner. They didn't have a chance to hiss at them or even prep to fire their odd little dark eco spewing weapons before two yellow eco powered bullets were lodged in their internal organs.

_'There's still another bunch down the hall.'_ Ambika chuckled.

'Wait a sec; you knew about the Metal Jackets on the other side of the door and you didn't TELL ME?!'

_'No, I couldn't sense those. These doors almost RADIATE eco. I couldn't sense the dark eco in the Metal Jackets until we opened them.'_

'Yeah, and they shot at us. Some help you.' Raye scoffed. "Ambika has been so kind to inform me that we've got another surprise attack waiting down the hall."

"Wonderful." Jak muttered, checking the bullets in his gun. "I'm running out of ammo."

Two pairs of identical blue eyes snapped up to the stretch of stairs ahead of them as a low buzz, much like what they had heard just moments ago, reached their ears. "Jak, that was possibly the WORST thing you could've just said."

After turning the remaining Metal Heads into much more useful- though not necessarily any more wanted- piles of dark eco, Jak and Raye made their way down the hall and back into the circular chamber.

"Are you guys sure about this?" Daxter asked as they walked along the curved wall, Jak's fingers trailing along the stone wall absentmindedly.

"No point in turning around now." Jak told him as the stone changed to cold metal. Raye let out a cry of surprise, and Jak turned around to see that her pendant was floating in the air in front of her. The two halves lit up- one dark violet, the other a bright turquoise- and a small beam shot out toward the door. It split apart and the halves slid easily into the walls, revealing a water filled room. The pendant fell with a dull 'thunk' back against Raye's chest.

Jak smirked and clapped a hand on her shoulder. "Now we're getting somewhere."

"That's the ticket!" Daxter laughed. "Onward!" Taking a few steps forward, the door shut behind them.

"Well, I guess we aren't going back that way." Jak muttered, surveying the room. At the edge of a set of broken stairs that led into the pool of water in front of them sat- or, rather, _floated_- an icon about the size of Jak's hand. It appeared to be a yin-yang symbol, much like the Seals the twins carried and glowing the same colors as Raye's had moments ago, with the two halves circling around each other in some kind of never ending dance.

"What is this thing?" Raye questioned to no one in particular, kneeling down in front of the object and reaching out a hand. As soon as she touched it, the symbol melded together into a blur of violet-blue-white light and flew toward the door on the other side of the room, disappearing into a symbol of the Seal over it. There was a small shuddering noise, and dust and bits of rock fell from the door frame.

"Our key out of here." Jak said, pulling his JET Board off of his back. "There must be more scattered all over the room."

Raye sighed, propping her Board up with a foot. "Have I ever mentioned how annoying I find these little tests?"

"Several times."

"Just making sure." She said, jumping onto the board and propelling it forward. "Whaddayou know, I actually remember how to ride this thing!" She laughed, pulling off a jump to snag another icon out of the air. Jak laughed and followed after her, pulling off to the left as he spotted something glimmering in a small alcove.

"You missed one, eagle eye!" He called, watching as the light disappeared like the last two had.

"Hey! Side path!" Raye called, flying up a ramp on the right side of the room. Jak just shook his head and went after the two that still floated above the pool, jumping and launch jumping to reach them, and adding a flip in just for the heck of it as he tapped the last one.

"Look out!" Jak pulled a rather sharp turn that almost sent Daxter flying as Raye sped out of an opening in the wall above him. She laughed. "That was fun!"

Jak shook his head and floated over to the stair case, using a launch jump to reach the top. "The door still isn't opening."

"On it!" Raye called, skating up the other ramp that Jak neglected to see before the blonde elf could turn around. Less than a minute later, Raye came flying out of a hallway on the other side, and the door behind Jak slid open.

"I missed this thing." Raye said as she landed next to Jak. He just shook his head.

"Just come on." He muttered, walking down the hall. Raye rolled her eyes, making a move as to follow after him slowly, but jumped as she heard gunshots from around the corner.

"Jak?" She asked, skidding to a stop next to him just in time to see a group of Metal Jackets die on the floor and explode into dark eco. She looked over at him to see that a smoking scorch mark on his shoulder armor. "Whoa…"

"I'm fine." He muttered, brushing her hand away and walking down the hall. Raye watched after him, blinking in shock. She followed after him, staying just behind his shoulder, not able to look at him.

"Hey, isn't this that room from earlier? You know, where you two got your light powers?" Daxter asked as they walked through the sliding door at the end of the hall.

"Looks like it." Jak muttered, eyes trailing over the large chamber. They locked onto the platforms that were spinning at almost impossible to track speeds, creating a large, almost circular blur. "That may be a problem."

"I think we should talk to that," Raye pointed to the Precursor Oracle, whose eyes were glowing brightly, "About doing something about them."

Jak nodded, walking forward. The Oracle's eyes flashed white as the two stepped onto the raised stairs. **"We meet again, great warriors. But sadly, your coming may be too late."** Jak and Raye glanced at each other, worried. **"You will soon meet the seed of our downfall."**

"Errol." Jak hissed, his fists clenching. Raye put a hand on his shoulder lightly, and he relaxed. About an inch.

** "It approaches quickly, and I fear we no longer have the means to stop it."**

"What can we do about it?" Raye asked. "If Errol's in command of those… things from my dream, how do we fight him? We're only two people."

**"You are the balance. The chosen heroes of the light and the darkness."**

Jak frowned, crossing his arms. "Last I checked, light and dark don't get along too well."

**"True. But you are the exceptions to the rule. The light and darkness in the two of you are in sync, cooperating with each other to give you the power to save us."**

"And what if we said we don't want to?" Raye asked quietly, looking down toward the copper floor.

The Oracle paused. **"Then we shall continue to fight, on our own. But the future is bleak without your help, heroes."**

Raye looked over at Jak. "Well?"

"Well what?" He snapped back, looking away. Jak knew full and well what Raye was asking him.

Raye put her hand on his shoulder. "Jak, you know what. This is our decision. We make it together. You're my big brother, remember? Whatever you say, I'll go with it."

Jak looked back at her over his shoulder. "Whatever I say? No arguments?"

She shook her head. "None."

Jak let out a sigh and covered his eyes with his hand. He stood like that for over two minutes before dropping it back to his side and looking up at the giant statue. "We're in."

"You're serious?" Raye asked, not able to hide her surprised smile.

He nodded. "But this is the LAST time. No more world saving after this. Got it?"

Raye nodded, laughing. "I knew you couldn't resist playing hero one more time." She teased, hugging him. Jak just rolled his eyes and pushed her off.

"Last time." He repeated insistently.

She nodded again. "Right."

The Oracle's eyes glowed white once more as a beam of light, similar to the first time surrounded Jak and Raye's forms, lifting them into the air. **"Behold, the pure power of light!"** The two were held suspended in the air for a few moments longer before floating back down to touch the floor beneath them.

"Uh, guys?" Daxter said, looking between the two. "You're still glowing."

The two smiled up at him. **"We know, Daxter."** "Jak" laughed.

It took the Ottsel a moment to comprehend what was going on. "You two… aren't Jak and Raye, are you? You're like Ambika and Lykaios, only with light eco."

**"Very astute."** "Raye" said. **"I am Angeni."**

**"Damien."**

Daxter shook his head. "Great. And the schizos of the century get worse." He muttered. "So, do YOU two have any idea of how to deal with that little problem?" Dax gestured to the spinning platforms. Angeni and Damien smiled at each other again, and the latter dropped to one knee and clapped his hands above his head. Daxter's jaw dropped as a wave of blue light spread from the spot Damien stood in, covering the room in a soothing- if not a little strange- blue glow. "Okay, what was that?"

**"Time,"** Damien started, **"Has been slowed."**

Daxter blinked down at him. "Wait a sec; you can stop time?"

Angeni shook her head as the two walked forward, toward the now still platforms. **"Not stopped, but close. Think of it as a… flash freeze. Unfortunately, it won't last long and we need to hurry."** They leapt across the platforms, the blue glow fading just as they landed on the ledge behind the third.

"I see what you mean by 'it doesn't last long'." Daxter said as the two continued down the hall. "Shouldn't you guys transform back? I mean, that stunt had to take a lot of eco."

**"Jak and Raye are quite exceptional Channelers, even with the dark eco bonded to their blood."** Damien commented, glancing up at Daxter. **"That only took, perhaps, half of the light eco in Jak's body. If he had attempted anything like that the first time he channeled light eco, I no doubt would have been drained entirely."**

"Wait, you mean that you've been around since Sandover?"

Damien nodded. **"Though Jak's experience with light eco was brief, it did bear my creation. Though, after the treatments he and Raye suffered at Baron Praxis's hands, I was forced to lay dormant until the Precursors awoke me again, and gave me a somewhat more… tangible form."**

Angeni cocked her head to the side. **"Do you hear that?"**

Daxter perked an ear, and then his eyes widened. "Uh oh. Metal Jackets."

Angeni laughed; it was a lilting noise that Daxter had never expected out of Raye. **"Don't worry, Daxter. There's nothing to fear from them."** She held her left hand in front of her, and four blue pulses flew out of it and down the hall. Proceeding further, the group observed the four Metal Jackets that had been coming to attack frozen in the air above them.

"How'd you do that?"

**"Much the same way that Damien slowed time earlier, only more concentrated."**

Daxter looked down at Damien. "So why didn't you just freeze the platforms instead of the entire place?"

Damien's cheeks darkened slightly, flushing to a darker shade of blue. **"It would have costed me more eco than I had to work with. Angeni is reasonably stronger than I am, to be able to balance with Raye's darker half."**

"You mean Ambika?" Daxter asked. "Well, that does make sense. After Raye went through those extra eco treatments, she did upgrade a little."

**"That is one way of putting it."** Ambika said with a shrug. **"She merely used the extra eco to reform herself, becoming more powerful. And even though my power surpasses Damien's, it is not by much, and that took quite a bit of effort. From now on, I believe I shall limit myself on such concentrated doses."**

"That may be a problem." Daxter said with a grimace, pointing at the room ahead of them. The chamber held a series of rapidly-rotating axels with razor sharp looking fan blades.

**"Not particularly."** Damien said, looking to his left. A vent pouring out sparkling white light sat there, radiating a decidedly peaceful aura.

"Now they've got LIGHT eco vents too?"

**"Apparently so."** He said, letting his hand hover in the stream. The turquoise glow around him got considerably brighter as his arm dropped back to his side.

Daxter looked between the two nervously as Angeni did the same. "Isn't that dangerous? I mean, after what happened to Raye when she touched that dark eco vent..."

**"Jak and Raye's bodies are not accustomed to channeling pure eco from the catacombs below us. But, because Damien and I are the embodiments OF eco…"**

**"She's just trying to make it sound complicated."** Damien laughed. **"Jak and Raye just can't handle the power of the pure eco, but we can since we're made of it."** Angeni crossed her arms and made a little 'humph'-ing noise.

**"Spoilsport."** She muttered after slowing the time stream around them. They made it over the still- slowly- spinning bar, easily timing themselves to pass the razor edged fan blades, and had both landed on the stone floor on the other side before the room flickered back into color. Angeni absorbed more eco from the vent to their left as Damien quickly put the room under another flash freeze. The tactic was the same for the last fan with Angeni freezing the room and Damien using the eco well to recharge.

"Well, I'm certainly glad that's over with." Daxter sighed as they walked out.

Damien stopped suddenly. **"I wouldn't count on it being over just yet, Daxter."** He warned, motioning in front of them. There was a large bridge laying before them to the other side of a very deep chasm.

Daxter grimaced as he looked down. "Yeah, but, no problem, right? I mean, we just walk over the bridge and-"

Angeni slid her foot onto the bridge and put a slight amount of weight on it. There was an audible rumble and dust exploded from the bridges underside and edges. **"It's unstable. It would fall in moments if Damien and I attempted to cross."**

"So now what?" Daxter groaned.

Angeni and Damien laughed. **"Daxter, you seem to very quickly forget that we can make a few 'moments' turn into 'minutes'."**

Daxter gulped. He knew one thing for sure: Damien and Angeni were definitely part of Jak and Raye. They liked scaring him too much for his own good. "Hoo boy…"

**"See? Was that so bad?"** Angeni asked as the bridge finished crumbling away in regular time behind them.

Daxter glared at her. "If you're part of Raye, you know that answer already."

**"I believe that's a yes."** Damien chuckled. He closed his eyes suddenly, and blue and white sparks flew off of his and Angeni's forms, leaving Raye and Jak standing there. Both elves shook their heads slightly, blinking several times to clear their vision.

"What just happened?" Raye murmured dizzily, looking behind them.

Daxter rolled his eyes. "Oh, nothing much. Your light sides just took your bodies for a joy ride through Monk Temple. By the way, they're both more psycho than Ambika and Lykaios are.

_'I resent that!'_ Ambika protested.

Lykaios growled. _'There's no way that pussy is worse than me!'_ Jak groaned and put a hand over his eyes. Raye was shaking her head.

"Dax, don't talk. Ever again." She ordered, walking toward the door in front of them. It slid open automatically, revealing an elevator.

Jak sighed. "Great. More great trips into the unknown."

"Didn't you know, Jak?" Raye asked, her words heavily laced with sarcastic amusement. "It's all part of the hero gig. You take horribly stupid leaps into the dangerous and unknown and come out alive."

"What if you don't come out alive?" Daxter asked curiously.

Raye shrugged, stepping forward onto the elevator. "Then you're just a moron. But, you're usually a moron with a commemorative statue."

"Your logic sucks." Daxter muttered as Jak walked over onto the lift next to Raye, laughing.

"Don't worry so much, Dax. You're totally safe with us." Jak assured him as the lift began to lower.

Daxter whacked the elf on the back of the head. "DON'T say that. Every time one of you says something like that, _I_ end up getting hurt!"

"God, Dax, you are such a weenie." Raye said, poking his stomach. Daxter just grumbled and turned away, rubbing said poked spot as if it was hurt.

"I think I have a bruise..." He whined.

"And I think you're a weenie, but that's just me." Raye retorted. The elevator jolted slightly and the doors in front of them slid open.

"Woah." Jak breathed. "This is…"

"Amazing." Raye finished.

The two elves were standing in what appeared to be some sort of station, made out of orange, Precursor metal. "It looks just like the catacombs that we saw in Haven City!" Jak said, looking around. "But… where do they go?"

"No idea. But I bet you anything that this is what'll help us find out." Raye said, pointing across the room. A sleek, two-seated vehicle sat- hovered, really- in the center of the largest area of the station. Blue eco glowed in patterns over the orange metal, and a slight hum was coming from it.

"Wow. That's some ride." Daxter commented, jumping down from Jak's shoulder.

"There you are!" Jak, Raye, and Daxter spun around to see Pecker land behind them. He let out an exhausted sigh. "I am so squawking happy I found you!"

"Pecker?!" Daxter exclaimed, disgusted. "What are you doing here?"

Pecker took a couple of deep (and exaggerated) breaths before answering. "I just received a message from Onin. She says we must to get back to Haven City, pronto!"

"Why? Is something wrong in Haven?" Raye asked, a hint of fear creeping into her voice.

The monkaw shook his head. "I couldn't get many details. But, she says that the catacombs are the key to the planet's very survival!"

Jak frowned, looking away. Daxter tugged on his pant leg. "Jak? You're not having second thoughts about this, are ya'?"

"No." He said after a moment's contemplation. "We're going back to Haven."

"Alright then." Raye said from behind them. Jak and Daxter turned to see her leaning one hand against the vehicle. "You boys up for a little ride?"

Jak walked over, with Daxter and Pecker following. "Raye, are you sure this is such a good idea?"

"No, but we need to get back to Haven, and this crazy thing seems like the only way to get there." She reminded him, hopping into one of the seats. Jak walked around the vehicle to the other side and hopped in as well.

"Usual plan?" He questioned, looking at the controls.

"Yep." Raye answered. "You drive, I shoot, and Daxter prays that we don't die. Sounds good here." She said, flexing her fingers and wrapping them around the controls in front of her, her thumbs poised over the raised buttons on the handles.

Jak pushed a button near the steering wheel and the Railer started off slowly. Daxter shrugged. "Hey, this isn't so ba-aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaadddddddddd!!!!!!!" His casual comment turned into a scream as they passed through the film like force field and the speed increased. Although, Jak sliding halfway up the wall may have had something to do with it too.

"Good Mar, Jak, be careful!" Raye yelled over the rushing wind.

"Sorry! The controls are touchy!" He jumped as Raye fired a blast suddenly, destroying a small girder that had been in their path.

"Keep your eyes on driving, and just leave the obstacles to me." She ordered, tightening her grip. Jak nodded and faced ahead of them.

Six holes, five laser shooting robots, two rotating electrical circles of death, one giant, bottomless gap, and god only knows how many obstacles later, another blue, filmy barrier came into sight. Jak's eyes scanned over the controls. "Raye, we have a problem."

"Problem? What kind of problem?" Pecker demanded.

Raye closed her eyes. "There aren't any brakes, are there, Jak?"

"Nope." He told her dodging around another gap in the tracks. "We'll have to bail out."

"Are you crazy?!" Daxter yelled.

"It's that or blow up when we hit the wall." Jak replied.

Daxter gulped. "Uh, right then. So, bail on three."

Jak nodded. "One…" Raye released her controls as the field grew ever closer and scooped up Pecker. "Two…" The Railer passed through the field and continued onward toward the back wall. "Three!" Both elves leapt out of the speeding death trap, rolling as they hit the ground and looking up just in time to see it explode. Both threw their arm up over their eyes to protect from the explosion.

As the echoes died down, both elves stood up and grinned at each other. Daxter frowned. "I have a question: why do the architects and engineers of the forces of evil and lost civilizations alike always have an obsession with death-defying rides, lethal traps, and nasty dark labyrinths? You know what would really help a dark empire or mighty, technologically-advanced ancient culture thrive? Escalators. Trams. Maps. Tour guides. The occasional bench to rest your weary Metal Head head on. And, oh, a swanky restaurant or two. I could sure go for a cold glass of yakow milk right now!"

Jak and Raye laughed. "Maybe you should go into design instead of running a bar with all these ideas of yours, Daxter." Raye teased.

He stuck his tongue out at her, but turned around as a glowing blue figure appeared out of seemingly nowhere with a little flip. **"You both show great promise, heroes, but your bravery will not protect you from the foes you must soon face."** The Precursor waved its hand and a stream of light beamed down on both Jak and Raye, lifting them into the air. They faded a second later, leaving Angeni and Damien in Jak and Raye's places. **"Use this light power to help in your quest. It is what little we have left to offer."**

"So, uh, what happened?" Daxter asked, trying not to smirk at the look of shock on Pecker's face. Being Daxter, and therefore around Jak and Raye almost twenty-four seven, transformations of any kind happening to his friends no longer even phased him. He had even taken to the point of teasing Lykaios and Ambika now.

Angeni smiled over at him. **"Watch."** Closing their eyes, two spherical shields surrounded the Light eco manifestations. Daxter poked one carefully, then shivered. It made him all tingly and his fur stand on end.

"Well, at least Jak and Raye don't have to worry about getting shot any more."

**"We can only maintain the shields for a short amount of time."** Damien chided. **"Even now, our eco reserves are at a low. It would be best to let Jak and Raye regain control."** And in a poof of blue sparks, it was done.

"Well, let's go." Jak said, scooping Daxter off the ground and setting him on his shoulder. Daxter shook his head. Jak had just been granted yet another great power by the Precursors, and he acted like it happened to him every day. Well, actually, it almost kind of did.

"One step closer to Haven." Jak said as the ground beneath them changed from metal to stone.

"Yeah." Raye muttered behind him. "One step closer to home."

--

SC: Okay, not one of my best chapters, but I liked the end. Inspiration just struck me suddenly after months of just not being able to write. I don't know what did it, but woohoo me! Anyway, R&R please! I know it's been a while, but I said please!

Ja ne

SC

PS: I am really sorry for the long wait though! Next one won't be so bad, I promise. Later!


	24. Chapter 24

Disclaimer: I don't own Jak, Daxter, or any other character that was created by Naughty Dog.

-- 

Chapter 24

Mar's Eco Mines

"So, where exactly are we?" Raye asked as they scaled up a jagged cliff face. As she pulled herself over the top, she gasped. "Whoa."

Before them lay a steep outcrop, and beyond that, miles and miles of carved out stone. "It… it looks like some kind of old eco mine. When Mar built Haven City, he must have carved out these old caves to get at the eco power." He said, awed.

Daxter rolled his eyes and scoffed. "Sheesh, that 'Mar' guy must not have slept much!"

Pecker took into the air behind them. "I'm going ahead to tell Onin we're back. Watch your tail feathers, you two! This is a spooky place."

Daxter glared at the disappearing Monkaw. "Figures. He ditches us, AGAIN."

"Don't start right now, Dax." Jak sighed. "Let's just see if we can get through here and find a way back to Haven ourselves."

Raye walked over to the edge of the rocky platform they stood on and peered over the side. "Well, it better not involve going down." She kicked a stone under the bars. It disappeared out of sight. She looked over at the boys. 

Jak grimaced. "Yeah. Good point." He glanced to his left and grinned, pulling out his Blaster. "But thankfully, it won't." He told her, aiming at the lock at the bottom of the vertical bridge's hinges and putting a bullet through it.

Unfortunately, the noise of the bridge falling into place woke up some unwanted guests. Two manta-like creatures rose from the ground where they had been camouflaged seconds earlier, "swimming" through the air like water. "The hell are those things?" Raye said, pulling out her own Blaster.

"Metal Heads." Jak growled, spotting the glowing skull gems in the Mantas' foreheads. He raised his Blaster to shoot, just as something violet and eco-like shot toward him. He leapt back, barely dodging the charging Manta that took his moment of distraction as an opportunity.

Metal Heads are so stupid sometimes. 

Jak landed flat on his back, aiming his Blaster up and putting three bullets through the Manta's body as it flew over him. It crashed into the rocks with a bone-breaking crunch before bursting into sparks of dark eco. "What the hell shot at me?"

"That." Raye said, pointing at the wall. A blue-green lizard clung to it, scuttling around and hissing down at the elves. Raye smirked at it and pressed a button on the underside of her Blaster, then pulled the trigger. She laughed manically as it hit the Gecko and then bounced off to hit another one on the farther wall. "Oh, that is so cool." She said, watching the bullet bounce off into the abyss below.

"As long as it doesn't bounce back toward us, anyway." Jak said, testing the bridge cautiously before heading across. Another bridge, several Mantas, one lift, and another bridge later, Jak and Raye were taking in one of their favorite pastimes: beating the snot out of Metal Head Grunts.

"I love how stupid they are." Raye said, grinning, as she picked up the left over skull gems. The eco scattered around it absorbed into her fingers like water, making the mark on her hand tingle.

Daxter rolled his eyes. "You two need a new hobby. How about knitting?" Jak looked over at him, not dignifying him with a response as he shot the Mantas and Geckos waiting to ambush them around the corner.

"Let's go." Jak called to Raye, who caught up to him before he hopped on the lift ahead of them. 

--

"That was quite refreshing." Raye said cheerily, knocking a large red sewer Rat into the fifth wheel that they'd encountered. 

Daxter glared at her suspiciously. "You enjoyed that WAY too much!" She just grinned at him and hopped up the platforms that the rat's running had revealed. Jak followed after her. 

When he reached the top, Raye had already moved around the corner. "Raye?" He said curiously, moving to follow her but stopping as something metal caught his eye. Walking over to a nearby alcove, he picked up a pair of greaves (or leg armor to those of us who are medievally challenged), turning them over in his hands. They were Precursor metal, just like the armor covering his arms. 

"Wow! Who would just leave these here?" Daxter asked. 

Jak shrugged lightly. "Who knows. But I doubt that they're coming back for them."

"Good point. So put 'em on! They match the other ones." Jak rolled his eyes and bent over, securing the straps around his shins.

He stood up just as Raye walked back around the corner. "Nice armor." She commented, glancing down at the newest accessories decorating her twin's legs. "You've got to come see this." She said, motioning for him to follow her.

Turning the corner, Jak saw what was so important. "What is this?"

"A bomb train." Raye said. "They're used to carve out eco mines like this one, only it's much newer. Volatile as hell, too, and loaded with explosives. But what this one's doing down here is totally above me."

Jak looked around the platform. It was surprisingly new looking, as was the train. His eyes fell on a lever standing out of the floor, topped with a dimly glowing red-orange head. "Raye, what's this?"

She looked up from the train and walked over. "It must start the train lift. God only knows what's up there, though." She said, craning her head back.

Jak wrapped a hand around the lever. "No better way to find out than going up." He said, pulling the lever. With a rumble, the lift slowly began its ascent to the above level. It stopped when the platform was level, and there was the quiet sound of locks clicking followed by wheels on rails. Jak turned to see the train- the volatile as hell one that's loaded with explosives- beginning to roll toward them. "Raye, move!" He ordered, leaping out of the way. She barely spared a glance over her shoulder before leaping aside, back against the rails surrounding the platform. She looked along the rolling tracks, and her eyes widened as she saw that pieces had been locked into a vertical position, and that the train was heading straight toward them.

"Shit." She growled, scrambling up and running down the path, pulling out her Beam Reflexor and aiming the laser at the glowing red target below the hinges. Pulling the trigger, the yellow eco charged bullet sped into the first target, bouncing like some mad rabbit into the second, lowering both halves of the tracks and saving the train from destruction.

"Raye, what are you doing?" Jak demanded, running after her. 

She didn't glance back at him, just kept running. "We have to make sure that train doesn't crash. If it does, and it explodes, it could take down half the mine."

"What!"

"These walls aren't stable. If we could get it to whatever's at the end of the tracks, maybe it will detonate safely." She explained, aiming at the next target. The bullet went off course, though, when something big and Manta-shaped dived down at Raye's head. She ducked, the bullet that shot out of the gun going haywire and bouncing around the canyon before disappearing into the abyss. She looked up at the sound of two more gunshots, this time from Jak's gun- one into the Manta's brain, the other into the target. He grabbed her forearm and pulled her to her feet. 

"C'mon. We've got a train to escort." Raye nodded and ran after him. 

--

"I think I see the end of the tracks!" Daxter yelled as Jak blasted away three Mantas that were attempting to dive bomb the pair.

The blonde elf glanced up to see that that the tracks did indeed end- straight into a metal door. "Raye, the tracks...!"

"Yeah, I see it!" She yelled back, taking aim at the two targets. With two quick shots, the red lights turned blue, and the tracks fell. The train clacked over them, the metal platform and straight into the door. The resulting explosion nearly threw the twins back, bursting their eardrums as well as Daxter's, and sent any Metal Head that hadn't already fallen to one of the firing Morph Guns spiraling into oblivion.

Raye put a hand on her head as white blue light glowed from the shrapnel cuts and sealed them as if they were never there. Wincing slightly as her eardrums mended, she looked over at Jak, who had a glowing hand on Daxter's head. "Wow!" Daxter said, climbing back up to Jak's shoulder. "That was some explosion. You weren't kidding, Raye."

"Never said I was." She shrugged. "Now, let's see exactly where this train was heading to."

Stepping cautiously over still smoking rubble, the two elves made their way through the now blown apart doorway. "It's... empty." Raye muttered. "There's nothing here."

Jak frowned. "Why would someone have a reinforced door to guard an empty room?" He asked, walking to the center of the room. There was a short rumble, and then the floor began to lower.

"Well, there's your answer." Daxter said, leaning on Jak's head. "It's a lift, not a room."

Raye crossed her arms, looking up at the rapidly growing smaller ceiling. "Here's a better question, then: where does the lift lead to?" There was a jolt as the lift came to a stop.

"Guess we're going to find out." Jak muttered, walking toward the open door ahead of them. Through the doorway was a circular, stone platform that gave the two elves the same feeling as the arena did before a battle; the air was unexplainably tense, making both elves' muscles tighten in expectation. Stepping onto the bridge, the sound of motors overhead made them look up to see a rather large metal door moving down toward them rather fast. Bolting across the bridge, the door slammed shut, destroying the pathway just as Jak and Raye made it onto the platform. They both looked back at it, hearts racing. The sound of another door- this one on the other side of the room, made them turn back around and walk across the stone platform, stopping at the plummeting edge as an all too familiar figure walked into the room.

"The monks told me you were coming through the Precursor sub-rails." Veger said, smirking at the two elves. "Interesting aren't they? The Precursors used them to build the world countless eons ago." He said, gesturing around them. "The rail system leads deep into the planet where it's said the ancient ones wait to bestow unimaginable powers upon the worthy. I will save the world with that power, just as Mar did!" He said, turning and looking at the gleaming gem topping his cane.

Jak snorted. "Yeah, you've done a great job so far, letting the Metal Heads destroy the Palace."

Veger smirked, his back still to them. "Oh, you couldn't be more mistaken, dear boy." He turned around swiftly, his expression serious. Then again, when wasn't it? "We're on a time clock, Jak." He pointed upward as he continued speaking. "That light in the sky. Do you know what it is? Our nightmare has found us and the end is coming! I needed quick access to the catacombs below, so I attacked the palace myself! It will be our little secret."

Jak and Raye's eyes widened as they both instinctively stepped back, away from Veger. "Well, you're full of surprises." Raye said, shocked.

"And you're both full of dark eco!" Veger roared angrily. "You two and your... rat are abominations!" All three glared at him. "But I will rid the planet of this scourge soon enough! Pure light will rule the universe, and I will be the bright light that shines to every corner of the world and destroys all shadows!" He cried, gesturing wildly with his arms as he made this speech.

Daxter raised his hand. "Uh, excuse me Count Vulgar-"

"It's Veger!" He yelled, glaring at Daxter.

Jak and Raye couldn't help smirking at the Ottsel as he continued. "Yeah, whatever." He said dryly, jumping down from Jak's shoulder. "Isn't it kinda nice to just curl up in the shade sometimes? Just chillin it... watching the hot babes prancing around in their skimpy little bikinis. Ya know, how they just jiggle." Raye and Jak shook their heads. Daxter had, not unexpectedly, gone off into another one of his fantasies. "I get that special tingling feeling in my... tail."

"Enough!" Veger ordered. "We will start the cleansing of the world with your demise!" He said, pointing at the three of them. "Behold!" He ordered, holding out his staff. The gem on top of it gleamed brightly as he turned around, back to the doorway. "I now command the very power of the ancient ones!"

The room shook as what appeared to be a strange rock formation over the door exploded to reveal the upper body of a Precursor robot. It glared down at Jak and Raye, who were looking at it with something like awe. Veger began to walk toward the door, but stopped. "And this time, the Precursors will not have mercy on you." The metal door closed with a squeal, blocking Veger from sight. Jak and Raye looked up as the robot broke its legs free of their rock casing and leapt into the pit before them, hovering there. 

"Jak? How do we beat a Precursor robot?" Raye questioned.

Jak grimaced. "I'll tell you as soon as I figure it out."

The robot interrupted the conversation as a red energy blade appeared in its hand. Raising the saber over its head, it slammed it down on the rock, sending a wave of energy across the room. Jak and Raye leapt over it, as well as the wave that followed. "Okay, well that wasn't so bad." Daxter said. 

As if to contradict him, the robot moved to the left edge of the arena, laying its blade horizontally across the stone and then dragging it across. "Daxter, stop talking." Raye ordered, jumping the blade.

As the robot finished trying to slice the two elves in half, it moved back into its previous position and raised a cannon-like hand into the air. Two shots rang out, and a pair of multi-legged, blue creatures landed on the platform. "What the hell are those?" Raye asked, pulling her Morph Gun out.

"Who knows, who cares." Jak responded, shooting one of them. His eyes widened as, instead of dying, the creature split into two more, smaller creatures.

"Brilliant plan, genius. Got any other ones?" Raye asked, slamming the butt her gun into one of the split creatures, propelling it over the edge as it too split into two smaller creatures. "Just kick them over the edge!"

Jak flipped his Morph Gun around to the heavier Vulcan Fury, blasting the creatures and their mutated spawn until they stopped multiplying and simply died. Raye rolled her eyes as she knocked the last one over the edge before it had a chance to multiply again.

Unfortunately, the robot wasn't done as lasers- five to be precise- shot out of his head, blasting into the rock. Jak and Raye retreated to the sides of the platform as the robot continued to try and burn holes in the stone. Or, at least that's what they thought it was doing until the rock spiraled out of the ground in five pillars, all of different heights. The lasers stopped shooting, and the newly formed pillars cracked and steamed as they cooled. 

Then he started shooting. "Damn it, how do we stop this thing?" Raye cursed as she ducked behind a pillar to avoid the shining bullets streaking over her head. 

"I don't know." Jak replied. "When I fought Gol and Maya, I had all four of the eco sages helping me, and even then it was mostly luck. Nothing hurts Precursor metal except for eco."

Raye frowned. "Well, then why don't we just attack it? Lykaios and Ambika have enough eco to take it down."

Daxter raised a hand. "Um, question? If Veger has control of this thing, don't you think that it probably is just going to attack anything with dark eco?"

There was growl from Jak's direction. "Of course! That's how its tracking us."

_'Oh goody. Now you have something else to blame on me.'_ Lykaios growled.

**'I hate to interrupt, but there's another large source of dark eco in the room besides us and Raye. It's right above the robots head.'**

"Problems up there?" Raye asked, interrupting Jak's mental conversation.

He shook his head. "No... Damien said that there's a source of dark eco over the robot's head."

"There's a-" Raye winced as a bullet whizzed by her and shot rock debris toward her. "There's a what over that thing's head?"

"Dark eco. Lots, apparently."

Ambika radiated shock. _'I can't believe I didn't sense that- how did HE manage to sense that first?'_

'I'm assuming you're talking about Damien.' Raye replied dryly, peering around the pillar. Her eyes traveled above the orange metal head and widened. She ducked back behind the pillar before the robot spotted her. "Well, Damien's right." She said. "There are three eco carts locked above the 'bot's head. If we could just get them down somehow..." She turned and looked over as she noticed the distinct lack of Jak next to her. "Jak?" She looked up to see him scaling the pillar of rock they stood behind, his Vulcan in one hand, making the climb more difficult. "What the hell are you doing!"

"Getting one of your carts down." He replied, pulling himself over the edge of the pillar. 

Raye shook her head, growling. "Idiot... I have got to stop risking my neck to save his!" She ran out from her protective spot and shot a blast of dark eco at the cute- er, sorry, evil robot. This effectively distracted it from the other elf-shaped source of eco- a.k.a Jak the moron- and it started to shoot at her instead. Too late did its mechanical brain realize that this was only a distraction and did it turn its attentions back to Jak, who was busy pounding away at one of the guards holding back the eco-explosive loaded carts with his Vulcan.

Needless to say, the cart quickly fell, and smashed the robot on the head, making a very pretty explosion, and the metallic beast fell into the chasm it was hovering over.

Jak leapt off the pillar and walked over to the edge, where Raye joined him a moment later. "Is it dead?"

There was a rumble down from the gorge and the robot flew back up, glaring down at them. "I'm pretty sure that's a 'no.'"

The energy sword appeared in its hand again, and it slammed it down on the arena floor, destroying the towers with the first wave, and disintegrating whatever was left over on the second. But the third nearly took out the two elves. "It's getting stronger."

"It's programmed to." Jak replied. "We have to stop it before it figures out a way to kill us."

Raye smirked over at him. "Well, it wouldn't be the first to try." They readied themselves as the robot prepared to sweep the arena with its sword. "Whatd'ya say, three shockwaves, three sweeps?"

"I'd bet on it." He said, frowning. "But that just means its getting stronger. If this continues, it'll just keep repeating the pattern."

Daxter looked down at Jak. "For how long?"

"In theory, forever."

Raye looked over at him. "That is not reassuring, do you know that? Sword!" The two elves leapt over it.

Jak growled as the sword came back, this time ducking underneath it. "If we could just get those last two carts free, the dark eco combined with the explosion might be able to destroy it."

"Great plan. Only two problems: One," Raye ducked down to avoid the third swipe of the robot's energy sword, "If we stand still long enough to try and shoot them down, the robot kills us. And if I try flying up there as Ambika, it still kills me, and leaves you alone to try and beat it. And I doubt you'll be able to do it again, not without pure light eco."

The two of them looked over at each other, struck with the same idea. Daxter did not like the looks on their faces. It was the look that they were about to try something stupid. "Guys? Jak? Raye? What are you two thinking? Whatever it is, stop it!"

The twins ignored Daxter. "Would it work?" Raye asked.

"I'm not sure. Is Ambika willing to try?"

"No, but it's that or die." 

Jak's eyes flared white, and soon the glow had spread over his entire body. He fell to one knee and slammed his hands together over his head. The blue-white explosion that shot out of it covered the entire room. Daxter looked up at the robot, who was poised to fire more Dark Splitters into the air. "Oh goody. Now we've prolonged our deaths. Woohoo."

"You are such a grouch, Dax." Raye said, flipping a piece of her bangs back. Daxter jumped. 

"What the- how are you not frozen!" She held up her left hand, the mark upon which was glowing slightly. "Oh."

**"Are you ready?"** Damien questioned.

Raye nodded and closed her eyes. "Let's just hope this works." Violet lightning crackled around her body as horns and wings burst through her skin. Not even a minute later, Ambika was standing in Raye's place. She looked down at her hands as if surprised. _"Well whaddaya know. It actually worked."_

Damien stepped up next to her. **"Hurry, Ambika. The eco-"**

_"Yeah, I know, I know!"_ She responded, and with a quick flap of her wings, had vaulted into the air. She grimaced, realizing that not only had Damien's flash freeze stopped time, but the air itself. Hence, it was more than a little difficult to fly. Finally though, she managed to grab onto one of the guards in front of the carts. She growled as she struggled to dislodge it. _"Piece a shit... come off!"_

Finally she managed to rip it off, sending it spiraling into the air, where it froze in place. On the ground, Damien was struggling to maintain the freeze, and his effort was showing in the flickering glow.** "Ambika, hurry!"**

_"I'm trying, I'm trying!"_ She replied, working on the next one. It broke free much easier, with Ambika just going after the bars on the sides instead of the entire lock. She leapt over the robot's head, beginning to revert back in the air. Raye landed next to Damien. 

"Alright, you can stop!" White sparks exploded from Damien's body, leaving Jak standing there. Raye caught him before he fell to the ground from exhaustion. 

The blue glow of the area faded away, and the robot was freed from the time lock, only to look up at the sound of wheels on metal tracks... falling straight toward its bright orange head. The two carts collided within nanoseconds of each other, creating an explosion so large that bits of the cavern's roof crumbled off. There was a metallic clang as blown off pieces of the robot hit the bottom or sides of the gorge it hovered over, and then an explosion that sent bits of metal debris flying into the air, along with two circular devices that had three stems of metal standing off in an odd triangle. 

"Gun mods?" Raye questioned. "What the hell was that thing doing with- nevermind, I don't wanna know." She asked, picking them up and tossing one to her brother.

Jak clicked it onto his Morph Gun and locked it in. The gun changed into a larger version of the Vulcan Fury, with the front end of the gun looking exactly like the mod. Daxter grinned. "Oh yeah! The boys are back in town!"

The blonde elf looked over at Raye, who was also now holding her new-and-improved blue gun. "Let's go topside and see what kind of trouble we can get into."

Raye smirked. "Now you're talking."

--

SC: Okay... so... hi. I've been in a bit of a bad way lately, what with feeling like shit and not being able to write, but now that school's calming down, I have plenty of writing time. Well, more anyway. So, for the few of you that are still actually reading this, review would be GREATLY appreciated.

Ja ne (and sorry!)

SpontaneousCombustion


	25. Chapter 25

SC: Okay, time to get my butt in gear on fanfiction. I WILL have this story updated soon... I hope.

--

Chapter 25

Home Sweet Home

Raye couldn't help gasping a little as the elevator came to a halt, the doors opening. "It… it's Haven. I can't believe it."

Jak stepped out, looking around. "But where is everyone?"

"Probably hiding from those!" Daxter yelped, pointing at the Stingers scuttling toward the two elves. Jak and Raye instinctively reached for their Morph Guns, stopping confused as the Metal Heads let out a loud hiss and scuttled away as fast as their little legs could carry them.

Raye straightened up and moved up next to Jak. "What… just happened?"

Jak looked down at his left arm, where the blue-white mark was pulsing lightly. "It's the Light Eco. They must be afraid of it."

"That's the first good news I've heard in a long time." Raye chuckled. "But it's probably because they're so small. I doubt that the larger ones are going to run away."

_'Hmph. 'Bout time they did SOMETHING useful.'_ Lykaios growled. Jak was seriously tempted to smack himself in the head, just to see if it would actually make the eco demon shut up.

"Yo, earth to Jak, come in Jak." Raye said, snapping her fingers in front of his face. He blinked and looked over at her sheepishly. She shook her head. "Come on, let's see if we can find a way out of here."

-Raye's POV-

Walking through the ruins of the city seemed… surreal. The place seemed worse than I remembered. The buildings were actually crumbling as we walked by, and there seemed to be an infinite amount of Metal Head Stingers darting over the collapsed buildings and broken roads.

"Raye?" I looked up to see Jak a few feet ahead of me. I hadn't realized I'd stopped walking.

I shook my head. "I'm fine. It's just… just a little weird to back. I never thought we'd be back here again. I forgot how bad this was, and it's definitely gotten worse." I caught up to him, unable to make myself stop looking at the bleak landscape around us.

Daxter, as if reading my mind, grimaced. "This place looks as bad as my old bedroom back home."

Then we turned the corner and everything seemed to get a little better… and a little worse.

"Jak, over here!" Samos called from the other side of the crackling energy barrier. Jak and I ran over.

"Samos, Keira!" Jak said happily, his tone slightly dampened by the solid light barrier between us.

Daxter smirked. "Ah, Samos. Still as green as the stuff between my toes." He said, waving his foot in the air.

Samos, having mastered the tactics of ignoring Daxter, ignored him. "See Keira, I knew I could feel Jak and Raye's energy. It is good to see the two of you again!"

"You too, Samos." I said. I touched the barrier warily. It felt solid under my fingers. "What is this?"

"It's one of Veger's new energy barriers." Keira said. "He's got them set up all over the city, and I heard that the Krimzon Guard robots have one set up to split the Industrial Section."

"Unfortunately, these barriers have also prevented us from examining the passageways below the palace." Samos said. "They must be terribly important, because the Metal Heads and KG robots are advancing toward them and we can't hold out forever."

Jak scoffed. "So the city needs us again, huh?" He crossed his arms. "What else is new?"

My eyes widened suddenly. "Samos, Veger is the one who attacked the palace, not the Metal Heads! He said he was looking for something below, something in the catacombs."

Samos's expression was grim. "Well, you're just going to have to find whatever it is before he does. But first, you'll need to find another way into this section of the city. Take the sewers into the Port, then find a way north to reach us." We nodded, and turned to go, but he stopped us. "Jak, Raye… we are all sorry for what happened. We should have stopped Veger."

"We'll stop him ourselves." Jak said quietly. Samos nodded, his expression still grim as he walked away. Keira hesitated.

I scooped Daxter off of Jak's shoulder. "C'mon Daxter. Let's give them a minute." I said softly, walking off.

-Jak's POV-

I felt Raye take Daxter off my shoulder. "C'mon Daxter. Let's give them a minute." She murmured softly. I could hear her footsteps fade around the corner and turned to Keira.

She looked up at me sadly. "Jak… I…"

I shook my head. "You don't have to apologize Keira. No one could've stopped Veger."

"But we could've tried harder." She said, bowing her head. I walked up as close as I could to the force field.

"Keira, this isn't your fault. None of this is." I said softly.

She looked up at me, smiling, and wiped a tear off her face. "I missed you."

"I know. I… I missed you too. A lot." It came out more awkwardly than I'd wanted. I swallowed. "I'm going to find a way over to you. I promise."

"I know you will." She replied, putting a hand against the barrier. I pressed mine over hers, grimacing as I felt the shimmering solid texture of the force field under my palm.

Keira took her hand away, wrapping her arms around her body. "You should go. Raye's waiting." My hand fell back to my side and I nodded, walking off. "Jak!" I turned. "When you get to the Port, go to the Naughty Ottsel. Torn's set up a headquarters there." I nodded, turning and leaving. I didn't find Raye and Daxter until I reached the door to the sewer.

"I didn't want to eavesdrop." Raye explained.

I smiled at her. "Thanks." I said, shifting slightly as Daxter crawled up my arm and back to my shoulder. Raye stepped toward the door, and the locks automatically began to undo. The door hissed open, and we both stepped inside.

"I have a question." Daxter said as we were going down. "Why is it that, whenever we have to do something in this city, that the sewers are involved?"

"It wasn't always, Daxter." I laughed. "Just… a couple dozen times, okay so it was a lot."

Raye grinned. "Remember when we had to come down here with Jinx and Mog and Grim?"

I groaned, still laughing, and put a hand over my eyes. "Oh, Mar, I thought you were going to shoot him."

"Yeah, he hadn't got much better last I saw him." She chuckled. "I guess I never told you Ashelin hired him to work for the FL. Obviously with Torn more than me, though I don't think Torn tolerated him much better than I did."

I had to ask. "What do you mean?"

"I walked into the meeting room and Torn was holding his dagger against Jinx's throat. Soon as I walked in, Torn just shoved him back, and Jinx walked out. I never asked what happened, and we just never brought it up. I always just assumed that Jinx said something about Ashelin."

"I wouldn't doubt it." I chuckled as the doors opened. We stepped forward onto the curving, grated metal path that led around the abyss below us. "Where's the exit?" I asked.

"Over there, I think." Raye pointed across the room at a door sitting above a curved half-pipe. "Let's-" She stopped suddenly, and I knew why. We could both hear the sound of engines over the rushing water.

"Wasps!" I yelled as the Metal Heads flew from the darkness below us.

Then a stream of electricity shot out from next to me. Raye was grinning as she held her upgraded blue gun, the source of the beam. "Very nice. I like this." It didn't take long to destroy the rest of the Wasps that rose from beneath us.

"Did it hit you?"

"No, Jak. It missed. I'm fine." She assured me, grabbing her JET Board and climbing onto the half-pipe. "Woo!" She yelled, hopping on her board and skating up one side of the pipe.

"Now you're just showing off." I called as she spun her board around under her feet before she skated through an opening at the other side.

She grinned down at me, flipping her JET Board up and stowing it on her back. "Whatever. You coming or not?" I sighed and pulled out my own JET Board.

--

"Look!" Daxter called, pointing forward. "It's a lift."

"Let's just hope it leads us to the Port." Jak muttered as he and Raye began toward it. Luck, however, was on our heroes side today, as, when the lift doors opened, they were treated with the sight of Haven City's infamous Port.

"Where is everyone?" Raye muttered, looking around. The streets were devoid of people, even patrolling Freedom League soldiers.

Jak shook his head. "Hiding, probably. I don't blame them. C'mon, let's go." Raye followed him through the deserted streets until, finally, they had reached the Naughty Ottsel. Daxter sighed happily as they walked toward the door.

"Ah, the Naughty Ottsel. Honey, I'm home!"

The sole occupant of the bar looked up in surprise as the door slid open. "Jak? Raye? Huh, never thought I'd see you two again."

Daxter blinked, looking around his bar. "Torn?! What have you done to my place?!" He demanded, looking at the ruin his establishment was in.

"We needed a Southern HQ for the war." Torn explained, smirking. "Plus, I kinda like the sign with the Ottsel Head outside."

Jak and Raye shot each other a questioning look. Daxter, however, smirked, crossing his arms. " Yeah. It's cool, huh?"

Torn's smirk was suddenly much more evil. "We use it for target practice."

"Hey!"

Torn turned his attention away from Daxter and back to Jak and Raye, much more serious. "Listen... I'm sorry we couldn't stop Count Veger. We all are."

Jak laughed, though there wasn't any humor in it. "Funny, we just saw Veger. He's trying to use Precursor technology for something."

Torn scoffed. "Figures. That guy always was one monk short of a choir. We have bigger problems now. Veger sent me on a suicide attack into the port and we got cut off. Now we can't get back to Freedom HQ. Our forces are divided and the KG and Metal Head fronts are squeezing us from both sides.

Daxter grinned. "Never fear, the trouble twins are here!" He said, clapping a paw on Jak and Raye's heads. Raye swiped at him before turning to the hologram projector in the middle of the room. It was flashing red.

"Speaking of trouble..." She said, pointing. Torn turned and hit a few buttons.

He cursed under his breath. "We've got incoming Blast Bots from the KG city section, heading this way. Think the two of you can handle it?"

Raye frowned, but Jak smirked. "Yeah. Back in a few minutes." The two of them ran out.

For a seemingly dead section of the city, the Port was certainly active now. Freedom League guards were running everywhere, attempting to stop the hulking metal menaces. "I see four." Jak said.

"Two each." Raye said, pulling her JET Board off her back and jumping into the Port's waters to head across the bay. Jak turned to his right and bolted down the street.

--

"Tyro, we can't stop this thing!"

Said elf gritted his teeth. "We've got to try! We can't let it reach the Ottsel."

The sound of bullets reached his ears, and Tyro looked up to see that the Bot's target had switched from them to something on the other side of the bridge; more particularly, the thing with the gun. The bullets continued to pour out, and before the Blast Bot could take more than a few steps, it began to beep in warning. "Get back!" Tyro ordered. The Blast Bot exploded, shards of debris bouncing off of the bridge itself and the elves' armor. Footsteps made themselves known as the sound of the explosion faded.

"Jeez you guys are pathetic. I leave for a couple of months and you get sloppy. Doesn't Torn teach you anything?"

Tyro pulled off his helmet, not sure of what he was seeing. "Raye?!"

"Commander!" Came ecstatic cries from behind him. Raye just smirked, then looked over as there was another explosion on the other side of the Port.

"I'm going, already!" She yelled. "Save it for later, boys. There are still Blast Bots to be dealt with." She ordered, hopping back onto her JET Board and flying toward the next of the robots. Finally, the last two were dead, and the Ottsel was still safe. Jak walked up to where he sensed his sister to see her crowded by suits of blue armor.

"Commander, I can't believe it!"

"We thought you were dead for sure in the Wastelands!"

"How did back in the city?"

Raye laughed. "Slow down. And don't call me that, I'm not your Commander anymore."

Someone in the crowd scoffed. "Ah, who gives a fuck what that bastard Veger says?"

"Good question." She called back. "Go clean up the mess those things left, we don't need any more coming back to pick up the pieces." Jak couldn't help a small smile as they all saluted her before running off.

"It's nice to be back on top, huh?" He asked playfully, receiving a hard shove.

"Oh, shut up. Let's just get back to the Ottsel." She said, walking off. Her brother followed, still chuckling.

When they walked in, Torn was busy trying to establish a connection with Freedom League Headquarters. "Ashelin? Ashe, it's Torn. Jak and Raye are back in the city."

A hologram of the Governess's head appeared, looking directly at the two elves. Ashelin smiled. "I knew I could count on the two of you."

Torn smirked. "That new KG leader is probably pissing in his-" He stopped as the hologram began to fuzz. "Wait, someone's jamming the signal! I think..."

The hologram changed drastically to the one that Jak and Raye had seen in the desert, only larger. Now, it was unmistakable who it was of. "Errol!" Jak growled.

"I live!" Errol cackled. "Still fighting for the weak link, eh?" He asked Jak and Raye, sneering. "Well, I've had a few 'enhancements' since we last met. Even the Metal Heads have their biological weaknesses. But me? I'm pure metal!" He glowered at them, smirking. "I'd love to meet the two of you again." He said, looking at Raye specifically as he did. The transmission cut off, and Samos took Errol's place.

"We must unite our forces, or we're through! Jak, Raye, you must reach us!"

Ashelin took over again. "We need you to break through and link up with us before it's too late. The KG robots are growing stronger, and that floating war factory of theirs is spitting out more robots every day."

"We'll do what we can, Ashelin." Raye replied. The governess nodded, and the hologram clicked off.

Torn turned to the two elves. "We need to assault the KG front. If we can break through their defenses, we may be able to get back to HQ and link up. Care to make some noise, Jak?"

Jak smirked. "We're always up for a little rumble, hey Dax?"

Daxter grinned, making 'guns' with his fingers. "Fish in a barrel, baby! Fish in a barrel."

Torn nodded. "Just what I wanted to hear, Daxter."

"Is there a way to break down the barrier separating us from the KG section?" Raye asked.

Another nod. "Yes. We've managed to rig a rocket that has enough power to destroy the barrier. Unfortunately, the energy beacons we need to charge it up enough are scattered all over the Port. We need something, or someone, small enough to pilot it. Preferably someone hardheaded, pointy, and too stupid to feel pain."

Daxter glared at him. "Why I oughta-"

Jak clapped a hand over his mouth. "Where's the rocket?"

"Tyro should have it set up just outside." Torn said. Jak walked out, taking the protesting Daxter with him. Torn looked over at Raye, who was examining him curiously. "What?"

"Nothing." She said. "Torn, why are you holed up in here?"

Torn turned around. "I don't know what you mean."

Raye frowned, walking over as she spoke. "Yes you do. I know you well enough to know that you'd be out there in the action if you had the chance." She put a hand on his shoulder in an attempt to turn him around, recoiling when Torn winced. "You're injured." She said, her eyes wide.

He looked away. "I knew something was wrong with you. What happened?"

"I got too cocky and a Hover Guard blasted me into a building." He explained. "It was a rookie mistake."

They both looked up at a scream from outside. Torn chuckled. "Damn. Didn't think he'd actually do it."

"That's Daxter for you." Raye chuckled. "How bad is it?"

He shook his head. "Not very. It's mostly healed up." He jumped as Raye put a hand on his side, then hissed in pain.

"Hold still." She ordered. Torn watched as a blue-white glow encompassed Raye's hand, and the pain in his side faded.

"Raye, what'd...?"

"Light eco." She said, watching as the glow around her hand faded.

He shook his head, chuckling. "You two never cease to confound me." Raye laughed at that. "Raye, listen. About the trial..."

"Torn, don't."

"No, just listen." He ordered. "I- I'm sorry I didn't say anything to defend you. I didn't know what to do."

"Even if you had, Veger would've just found another reason to get rid of me. I'm probably better for it, anyway." She said, lying smoothly. She stood up and headed toward the door.

"Raye." She turned. "Stop trying to lie to me, would you?"

She didn't reply, just walked outside and over to Jak. "He really is sorry." Jak said.

"Can we not talk about this?" She asked. "Where's Daxter?" Jak pointed at the blur speeding across the water. "Good Mar, where did Torn get this thing? I didn't know we even had any high-speed rockets..."

It was the explosion that caught their attention. "Daxter!" They both yelled, running toward the source of the noise.

What they found was the remains of the ruined barrier, and Freedom League guards rushing past to fight off the incoming swarm of KG bots. Daxter, to both elves' relief, was pulling himself out from beneath the rubble. "Dax! You okay?" Jak asked.

"Never better." The Ottsel replied somewhat woozily. Jak scooped him up into his arms, quickly healing any of the injuries he could spot.

Raye turned as someone tapped her shoulder. "What is it?" She asked.

"Torn says that you need to head down to the Gun Course." The soldier said.

"Oh, well, if Torn says so..." Raye replied sarcastically, rolling her eyes. The soldier chuckled before running off with the others.

"Well?" Jak asked as Daxter, now completely healed, clambered back up to his shoulder.

"To the Gun Course." Raye said with a shrug."

--

SC: Okay, well, my plan on updating everything sooner totally blew up in my face. I had drum major auditions last week, and I didn't make it, so I've been a little depressed lately. But, I'm over it now, as I only have three days left of school, and I don't even have to be there for most of them. I love being exempt from my finals. Anyway, sorry for the wait, and it should start going faster, as I'm going to Michigan in a few weeks, and we all know what that means!

Puck: I have free reign!

SC: Yes, exactly! Let the writing begin! Reviews muchly appreciated!

Ja ne  
SC


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